During my journey towards Hyderabad last week, I saw “హైదరాబాద్ మాది రా, ఫ్రీ జోన్ ఎక్కడిది రా” (Hyderabad is ours, its not a freezone), a red and bold sentence on a wall. That reminded me few incidents about contentions for land and my thoughts in regard. viz.,
1) In my childhood, my teacher told me that "Andhra Pradesh (AP) consists of three regions namely Telangana, Rayalaseema and Kostha Andhra". I didn’t ask “Why there are three regions within a single state?” (This was one of those thousands of questions that bugged my brain for longtime in childhood). In the intervening years, new parties germinated in AP with the Separate Telangana concept and made news all over the world. But teachers are still teaching that "AP consists of three regions". :). I deem, People, who knew the story about Berlin-Wall, may not encourage the segmentation of a state into multiple states and erect barriers.
2) Years passed and I joined in an IT company, in Mumbai. One day a friend of mine told me that a local party members created rampage in Shiridi against the people from AP, because those people were migrants. That incident reminded me the strifes about,
(*) MUMBAI name: formerly Mumbai was called as Bombay ( few months back a local party threw stones on BombayDyeing show room for not changing its name to MumabiDyeing...yet!!!),
(*) And the turmoil of migrants from UP, Bihar and southern parts of INDIA to Mumbai.
I want to torch light on one thing here; “The Likes of Gandhiji, Nethaji, and Alluri faught for the freedom of INDIA, not for the freedom of Gujarat, Orissa or AP”. Then in independent INDIA what these local parties are fighting for? And what they did when NSG (includes guards from different states of INDIA, not only Maharashtra) rescuing TAJ victims on 11/26?
3) Globalization happened (and is happening) in every field, so is in my observation. When I was watching “RAW is WAR” in my adolescent age (a famous wrestling program) I didn’t realize why people in that Madison Square Garden booing a wrestler, carrying a Canadian Flag. And in the recent past I saw a sitcom where a New Yorker disparaging a Canadian, Canada and even New Jersy!!!. I realized that America is also not saved from the contentions for land. (I need not mention anything about Jerusalem, NY-NJ conflicts exclusively here.)
The response of Saladin in conversation with Balian from the film Kingdome Of Heaven, “Nothing. [walks away, then turns around with a pained look] Everything!” soothes me whenever I think about these contestations.
P.S.: I know my HK friend has his say about this article.