Let me begin with a capital ‘I’. I had, in my daily column recommended Dhoni to quit after our team’s miserably dismal performance in the World T 20. That was enough. I was at the receiving end.
Someone asked me to ‘shut up.’ Another one: “What is this nonsense? Illogical comments and suggestions. Yet another: “Dude, who is the author, why are you so jealous of Dhoni. All you want is victory, then there is only one solution. Leave the keyboard and go to the nets practice and play for India if selected and be our captain.” Well, He doesn’t know that being a Tamilian is a disqualification to be in the Indian Team. Even the Sri Lankan Team has a Tamilian.
To my suggestion that our present team-members should at least now realize how difficult it is to be like Ganguli, Dravid and Tendulkar, the reaction was ‘What stupid comparison?’
There was someone to defend me, though. “Did u watch the match and did u see Dhoni’s mistakes. There was so obvious only a blind man could miss them. I am not about losing. It is about the blunders and mistakes right from start,” (sic) said an understanding reader.
To me, there was another solace. The theme for the Chennaionline poll was: “Dhoni is fully responsible for India’s exit.” Agree? 72 per cent said yes; 24 No and 4, can’t say. Ninety percent of the comments were decidedly critical of Dhoni’s captaincy – or lack of it!
I have very strong views about this game. I would reserve it for another occasion.
V R Krishna Iyer is a familiar name. Who can ever forget some of his landmark judgments that he delivered as a Supreme Court Judge?
Rama Iyer had seven children, the first of him was Venkateswaran, while the second born was Krishnan. He was followed by Ranganayaki, Vijayalakshmi, Meenakshi, Ramachandran and Lakshinarayanan. (Yes, the very same V R Lakshminarayanan, who retired as our DGP and who is presently the Chairman of Bharathiya Vidya Bhavan, Chennai.)
Sorry for that digression. Krishnan, or V R Krishna Iyer is, if one may borrow a Supreme Court idiom, one of those rarest of rare individuals, blending in himself, in mellow measure, activism with restraint, politics with principle, scholarship with humanism, and daring with dedication.
I can hear you asking me, what is the provocation for details of VRKrishna Iyer now? Well, I happened to view his interview on the TV. He was called to the Bar in Malabar, in 1938, then under the Madras High Court. His popularity led to his candidature, as an Independent with a Left slant, in the Madras Legislative Assembly elections (1952) from a constituency close to Tellicherry. ‘I won the seat defeating the Congress and Socialist rivals in a contest conducted with dignity and fair play. Thus, in the Madras Legislative Assembly, I sat in the Opposition benches where Sri.T. Prakasam was leader, and Rajaji was Chief Minister and C. Subramanyam was Education Minister.
“From 1952 to 1956, while battling against Rajaji and company, I mastered the art of parliamentary debate, use of the legislative process for constructive goals and moved private member's bills one of which was unanimously passed. Hard-hitting speeches were my forte. Walk-out negativism was and is escapism in my view.” V. R. Krishna's diction was geared to creative victory in the House, not desertion of the athenaeum where the grand inquest of the nation was held.
That he was a member of our legislature was news to me and I thought I would rather share it with you.
When he joined the Ministry under EMS, the latter told him the Communist Ministers had decided to voluntarily cut their monthly salary to Rs.350 from Rs.500. However, as Krishna Iyer was an independent member of the Legislature, he was allowed to draw the entire Rs.500, since he was losing his ‘huge’ income as a lawyer.
There has been no let-up in the summer heat of Chennai, in spite of a drizzle or two here and there in the city. This adds to the woes of our commuters. Let’s hope for early mon‘soon.’