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Terrorised Bangalore

It's over a month since the Bangalore blasts, but there's no denying that it's left people jittery all over. Picture this - we were coming back from a shoot and there was this loud explosive sound just in front of our building (ours being an MNC-type building, we're likely targets for everything from Kannada Vedike protests to terrorists).

Vehicles suddenly screeched with brakes, the few techies waiting for autos ran in the direction opposite to the sound, about 27 security personnel posted from ground to sixth floor of our building ran out on to the roads to see if they could save the lives of all the techies working in our building so that they (the techies) could continue to boost America's economy (which sure needs some help now).

We wondered if we were up against another of those looong 'terror-strikes-Bangalore' days,' when out comes a cabbie - it was a call center cab that unfortunately suffered a punctured tyre. Woe, Woe!

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What happened to grey cells?

If you've just been through a 'serial blast situation,' there's no better book that you can go back to, than Poirot. Really. Re-reading Poirot's techniques in some of my good old favourite Agatha Christies makes me wonder what has the world come to!

In those days, there were no surveillance cameras, no DNA evidence and certainly, certainly no narco-analysis tests. Yet, Poirot was not one to scoot around measuring the length of footprints, to collect bits of cigarette butts and test the texture of the lipstick marks on it. He solved his cases 'scientifically,' by 'using method,' Christie says.

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More method

Was speaking to a senior police officer yesterday about 'methods and methodologies.' It's more than a month after the blasts; so why are they taking so much time? When the IISc blast happened, they had arrested about 8 people within a month, I reminded him. "We don't mind risking the criticism for the delay... we want to go about it scientifically..."

How?

"Well, we've reconstructed the entire series of incidents... as in, we know exactly how it was carried out... when the bombs were placed, what was used in it, how they did it. We only don't know who the people are, everything else, we've pieced together."

Wow, to think that the one thing we don't know is the most important thing!

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Hog-ne-kal

Anbumani Ramadoss was in town for a public function. And decided to make an appeal to the media on the occasion - and this is how the conversation went:

Ramadoss : "Please do not politicize the Hognekkal issue... it's about drinking water.. people in my constituency (Dharmapuri) are all affected by flourisis because of the bad quality of water."

Question - Sir is there a dam or a barrage being built? What's the plan? Will it cause flooding in Karnataka.

Ramadoss - No, I don't know all that. But please just give them some water. It's criminal to think they can't get enough water to drink when the river flows in their district...it's a health issue..."

Question - Why don't you ask Karnataka Minister Ramachandra Gowda, sitting next to you?

Ramadoss - Yes my appeal is to him too.

Question to Ramachandra Gowda : Sir, why is Karnataka objecting to the project? What is being built there?

Ramachandra Gowda - I don't know... I have to confirm the details of the project..

Oooo... The BJP was the first party to make Hognekkal an issue -- before the elections. And the PMK, DMK and other MKs have been insisting on going ahead with the Hognekkal project for the last few months. How good do you feel knowing that neither Ramadoss nor Ramachandra Gowda knows what the project is?

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Passing thought

If you were Deepika Padukone, and you played a 'friendly' match against your dad who happens to be a major badminton champ, would you tie up your hair so you could see the shuttle more clearly or leave it open to make it look like a shampoo ad?

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