The arrest yesterday of Babubhai Katara, the honourable Member of Parliament of the honourable Bharatiya Janata Party, while trying to “smuggle” a woman and a teenaged boy to Canada on passports of his wife and son, reveals not just how politics provides a legitimate cover for crooks and criminals to carry on their nefarious activities, but also how rampant human trafficking has become.
Katara isn’t the first entrepreneur to exploit this “body shop”. The singer Daler Mahendi was accused not long ago of sneaking Indians across for a price by presenting them as members of his troupe. And in the aftermath of the Gujarat pogrom, Narendra Modi, again of the honourable Bharatiya Janata Party, used all his collected acumen to foist similar charges against Mallika Sarabhai.
Questions: Has politics, in the words of the incomparable T.J.S. George, become the “first refuge of scoundrels”? Should Katara be stripped of his Parliament membership? Are VIPs like these responsible for the suspicious manner in which officials at embassies look at Indians suspiciously? If things is rising and shining, why has human trafficking become so rampant? Tell.
Politicians have a free hand in carrying out any anti-social activities. The government is directly or indirectly bending the rules to favour them. But arresting the Babubhai is one of the boldest move and same with the BJP for terminating his membership.
he should be put behind bars for next 15 years.Till now I have failed to understand why people want to move towards west when there are no better oppurtunities for less educated/skilled . I have seen many people from western India and South eastern India leave well paying jobs in India and come and work in Dry cleaners , Hotels ,Gas Stations, Saree shops etc .
Many with whom I have talked said they were teachers in major convent in Hyderabad or bank official in Gujrath .
Its no easy life here earning 10-12$ an hour .Paying 500 – 600$ rent for an apartment which is worst of its kind .Cannot afford/drive a car , cant get a licence , always live with a sense of fear .
A Gujrathi couple that I know in their late 50s work in odd jobs that I mentioned as above .Make around 3000$ per month combined ( with no tax ) and have been here for past 15 years .They first came on a visitor visa and went underground .They were not present when two of their sons got married and had to be content in seeying the entire rituals in a VCD .Now they are sending their son’s family for various foreign jaunts to UK,Singapore with a sole reason that next time when their son’s family apply a US visitor visa ,they should be able to get one easily . They want their son and his family to come on US Visa and disappear .
Most of the times these people are exploited and made to work like 15 hours a day .Likewise I have seen people coming on h1B and working in gas stations .The parent company would have registered as a tech company ( which is again illegal ) .
As long as this fascination for west continues people would continue to exploit and get caught .
It is a shame that one of our Member of Parliament is involved in Human trafficking and trust me in a few months he will be going around in political circles giving pose to media . Absolute Shameless creatures .
These Guys are worst than those worms which are existant in gutter .
Is there any way we can use this BLOGS to show our dissatisfaction at these acts of so called elected representatives . Do these guys have any shame . Which national leader is worthy enough to be trusted ?
Is there any Mukthi from all these ? Can any of us win elections with just a fair name and no money ? How many of people like us is needed to change the way the state is run ? What is the future of this billion population land?
One honest question. How many of you think Indian politics is clean & qualified people can get elected? Answer is emphatic none. Even if they do get elected(Read APJ,Manmohan etc)they end up supporting criminals as they out number the good ones.
Politics attracts only the criminals in our country.Only a holocaust of the size of Hiroshima or Nagaski in our great ancient country can clean up the mess.