Honour – misread

It doesn’t happen too often with normal people (as you and I like to call ourselves) to feel sorry about our own name that would have been spoken, heard, written, read zillions of times across the years. Considering myself normal, it never happened with me, till 10 minutes back.

In the last 10 minutes I went through the article saying some Prakash Thakur has filed a case against Sania Mirza for putting her feat pointing towards the national flag. Is it a sorry story for Ms Mirza who, knowingly or unknowingly, became the Indian pin-up tennis player, or for the honour that has been supposedly been hurt? More has been written about the former (and more read), I’m sure so I am, as I had wanted to, concentrating on the latter.

I sometimes wonder why the sensitive citizens and self-proclaimed moral police go for all possible things that garner best media attention! Sue a tennis starlet for her feet pointed towards the flag? So what happens to people who throw flags on the street or in the sewer after every national holiday? Sure they are numerous and can not be caught for filing against them! And those who do not honour for what the flag stand for (or they think it stands for)?

fyi, the case is filed under National Honour Act. I feel myself not wanting to dissect whether it is pity or obviousness that we can sense the dishonour only in symbolic things like the national flag and anthem and all the motionless idols across the country. And fail to sense it in senseless political vandalism, big-brotherly attitude of self-contained political outfits and offshoots; not to mention the other more conspicuous phenomena like corruption, illiteracy, degradation of health, etc.

I can think of numerous counts of such senseless petitions in recent times – the row over SRK smoking being the latest. I wonder what plays in the minds of such petitioners. Do they really think they are right in doing so? Or is it five minutes of fame? Or is it simply a high they get outta emphasizing the power of a citizen (aam aadmi) over a celebrity? I donno where does this khujli comes from! Mr Thakur is too insignificant to occupy so much of my mindshare. What I sure know is that the increase in number of such cases, because of too many “good folks” around, is putting burden on the judiciary system and frustrates me.