Supreme Circus

The Supreme Court of India's decision to defer the Babri Masjid verdict by the Allahabad High Court is dangerously mindless. While I am relatively ignorant of the legal technicalities, here is why I believe this could have far-reaching and unhealthy consequences:

- While the Judiciary is grappling with debates around executive interference and questions around integrity of judges of superior courts, such a confused signal from the highest court in the country is what we needed least. Part of a Court's primary function is to resolve disputes between individuals and/or groups. To throw the ball back in their court (pun unintended) for a solution questions the very need for a judicial system to exist. That this should revolve around a High Court judgement makes it even more baffling given the wide-ranging powers conferred to High Courts by Article 226 of the Constitution.

- The logic behind the postponement seems even more preposterous. Judicial discipline is meant to ensure judgements are made in keeping with the law of the land with scant (or rather, NIL) regard for social or political ramifications. Implementing verdicts and reigning in their consequences are part of the Executive and Legislative purview. If courts were to now factor in law & order issues and similar fallouts, it will lead to significant weakening of judicial resolve. If this were to become the order of the day, it may be impossible to dismiss unlawfully formed governments, convict those accused of communally sensitive crimes and the like.

- Lastly, loose remarks around convoluted circumvention of potential show-stoppers like impending retirement of a sitting judge does not befit courtrooms in The Supreme Court. Surprisingly, the legal fraternity does not seem to be protesting against this irrational decision to admit a ludicrous petition with the kind of decibel levels one had expected.

Coffee Anyone?

As a self-styled bloke, I am a natural fan of "The International Rules of Blokedom" (Google it for details). One of the 2 additions that I have sought to make to this list of interesting rules is- "A Bloke shall not be seen in a coffee bar post sundown". (there is another on bacardi-drinking men but more on that later). Frankly, for a long time I never saw reason to visit say Barista pre sundown either. Domestic pressures around numerous flanks have prompted a climbdown in stance albeit with the Blokedom Rule remaining intact. One such visit was to "Gloria Jeans Coffee" in the neighbourhood over the weekend.

As we neared the cafe (with its Devnagiri signage if you please), we encountered a couple purposefully strolling in armed with a book each in hand. I was a trifle perplexed at the need to catch up on reading in a public place over a weekend but there was a first in store after all. It was my first glimpse of a hard-bound P G Wodehouse. At the risk of sounding tacky, I guess "coffee-table books" have given way to "coffee shop editions". Having placed our order, we seated ourselves in the outdoor section of the cafe since all the seats inside were taken by similar couples deeply engrossed in "reading".

I noticed a long-haired, bearded gent (mysteriously, 70% of all men in coffee shops seem to wear beards) gesticulating wildly with his arms. Initially, I thought he was trying to indicate an open door or a wobbly tyre to a motorist opposite. To my amazement, he was actually practicing (or maybe "composing") a music score! It seemed as if noisy automobiles whizzing past him whilst honking away to glory, did wonders for his concentration. Or perhaps, the positive creative energy that a cafe's ambience generates is completely lost on me.

More was in store. In walked a bald gent sporting a mane inspired directly by Professor Calculus. Just as I was reconciling to his err, "unusual" appearance, I noticed he was not fully bald after all. At the rear of his head, there lay a carefully cropped, square tuft of hair ostensibly as his trademark style statement!

I could go on and on about the number of bizarre sights and sounds that I encountered in a mere 45 minutes. But lets come to the point. Firstly, my blokedom rule stands reinforced with the rider around sundown too being deleted. Second, coffee bars join the long list of impressive marketing stories that have succeeded in creating an intellectual imagery around themselves. Gone are the college kids lounging around over numerous cappucinos for the sake of being in air-conditioned environs. Weird souls with a crying need to publicize their intellectual pretensions seem to have taken over, at least part of the space.

A caveat- I retain rights to think of myself as a bloke despite future trips to coffee bars. A little hypocrisy is well worth it for the sake of domestic bliss.