Dheeraj Kalgutkar

वो जो हरा भरा है वो जहां झील है तालाब है साफ़ पानी है, स्वच्छ नदी है पशु है, पेड़ है, इन्सान भी है वह कश्मीर है वह शांत है, वह नॉर्मल है कश्मीरी खुश है वे खुश है ये जानेबगैर कि ख़ुशी की बात क्या है। उनके न फोन चल रहे है ना वाट्सेप है, ना इन्टरनेट पर वे खुश है वे अपने परिवारवालों से बात नहीं कर पा रहे हैं वे ईद की रोज अपनों से गले नहीं मिल पा रहे है पर वे खुश है। उन्होंने अपने दरवाज़े बंद रखे है वे शायद हम से बात करना नहीं चाहते उन्होंने अपने घर के सामने सेक्यूरिटी लगाया है हर दस कश्मीरियों के लिए एक टीप-टाप कपड़े पहने बंदूकधारी है जो हर तरफ निगरानी रखे हुए हैं वे रोकते है हमे कश्मीरियों से बात करने से वे टोकते है उनके पोस्ट है हर पचास कदम पे वे बताते है आपको कौनसा रस्ता लेना है बिना आपसे पूछे कि आपको कहा जाना है गुलमर्ग कभी दायें आता है तो कभी बाये अस्पताल में एक छोटी लड़की आयी है उसके आँखों पर अभी पट्टी बंधी हुई है न जाने क्यूँ उसने अपने ही आँखों में पत्थर डाल लिए है बाकी कश्मीर में शांति है टीवीवाले कह रहे है अब कश्मीर उनका है किनका है? उनका है। वे कह रहे है कि अब वह यहां अपनी ज...

Politicians may believe, people may believe but journalists should never take anyone on face value, not even army. Their only ally is truth and truth alone. We seem to have forgotten the basic principles of journalism all along and have comfortably turned ourselves into the extension of government in power. Would you believe if someone tomorrow came to you and claimed he slapped another guy? If this supposed event occurred inside closed doors, probably one will seek proof now that the guy you claim you’ve slapped is denying it. Second, if there is no proof, then you may pass the information as hearsay that he claims he “slapped” the other guy which is perfectly legitimate statement. But nowhere you are supposed to claim the authenticity of the “slap” by yourself if you are a neutral authority whose sole aim is to bring out the truth and call people’s bluff; that is if you are a journalist. If you are a politician, a friend of the party who “slapped” then that’s an altogether ...

  A man just died on the LOC — Line Of Control. A man-made line since 1947 on this globe that came into existence long long before those who ‘drew’ it came into existence themselves. This line was drawn to mark and differentiate two countries namely, India and Pakistan who till that day lived in co-existence as colonies under another nation called England who had built an empire where ‘sun never set’. These two nations called it quit and actually, this was the first BRexit from history! But alas, like many other inventions from subcontinent, this too went unnoticed. He didn’t simply die like god would will it otherwise but was shot. A whizzing bullet straight to his head, sideways. Someone aimed it center but missed his mark yet the man died. What a poor creature. This planet of ours which is revolving around a star named ‘Sun’ in a galaxy called ‘Milky Way’ and universe which is infinite with umpteen galaxies, and still more umpteen stars and planets is inhabited by many...