India’s 2009 Moments

“For last year’s words belong to last year’s language.  And next year’s words await another voice.  And to make an end is to make a beginning.”  - T.S. Eliot “Little Gidding

Before another voice can be heard, here are words and events that dominated India’s language in 2009.

Techno Moment: Shashi Tharoor on twitter
Shashi Tharoor became India’s most active twitter politician in 2009 and contributed most to popularizing twitter among Indians with his regular tweet controversies.
Nuclear War of Words: K. Santhanam vs. Anil Kakodhar
India top nuclear scientist K. Santhanam and former Atomic Energy Commission Chariman Anil Kakodkar were engaged in a virtual war over the credibility of India’s 1998 nuclear tests.
Most Inconspicuous Domestic Moment: Parliament passes Right to Education Bill
The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Bill, 2008, seeks to provide education to children aged between 6 to 14 years.
Social Revolution Moment: Gay sex decriminalized
A court in the Indian capital, Delhi, has ruled that homosexual intercourse between consenting adults is not a criminal act. The ruling overturns a 148-year-old colonial law which describes a same-sex relationship as an “unnatural offence”.
‘Organizing Identity’ Moment: All Indians to get Unique Identification Numbers
Nandan Nilekani, co-chairman of software giant Infosys, is appointed as the chairperson of the Unique Identification Authority — constituted to provide identity cards to Indian citizens.
Stirring the Hornet’s Nest: Countering the Naxal Challenge
The government realized that peace efforts to counter the Naxal challenge were not working and thus announced a new long haul strategy that will involve simultaneous, coordinated counter-operations in all Left-wing extremism-hit states, thus plugging all possible escape routes of Maoists.
Diplomacy Shock Moment: Sharm el Sheikh
India agreed in a Joint Statement with Pakistan “action on terror should not be linked to the composite dialogue process and these should not be bracketed” and that “terrorism is the main threat to both countries.”
‘All iz Well’ Moments: Regional Diplomacy
Civil War ends in Sri Lanka, Monarchy is abolished in Nepal, Sheikh Hasina assumes political authority in Bangladesh, Karzai wins disputed elections in Afghanistan and the Af-Pak campaign is launched and India sails through all these transformations without making much diplomatic noise or policy adjustments.

Moment of Glory: A.R. Rehman wins Oscar
A.R. Rehman won two Oscars for best original score and best original song for Slumdog Millionaire.

Ghost from the Past Moment: The Liberhan Commission Report
The leaked inquiry report blamed senior BJP figures including Atal Behari Vajpayee and LK Advani in the 1992 demolition of the Babri Masjid mosque.

Villain of 2009: Ajmal Kasab
The only terrorist who survived the 2008 Mumbai terror siege continued his Bollywood style drama through-out 2009 while the nation expressed outrage over ineffective counter-terrorism diplomacy.

The surprise Moment: Telangana to be a separate state
Following Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) Chief, K. Chandrasekhar Roa’s 11 day hunger strike, the UPA Government was ‘forced’ to concede to the demand of a separate Telangana state, carved out from the ten districts of Andhra Pradesh.

2010 Challenge: Commonwealth Games
Successful and impressive hosting of 2010 Commonwealth Games is the foreseeable challenge facing India in the coming year.