Why not?

It was the year 1975 and we started to struggle for the admission in a medical college. It was so simple a procedure during those days; you obtain enough marks and you would find a place in the merit list. And those enough were quite unlike what we notice at present times. 75% aggregate got First Class first position in premedical section in that year whereas one of my patient’s daughter with 76% seems to have no hope for getting even to the gate in the present era. This remark isn’t meant to offend those hardworking students, as one very senior person sitting at the Dow University Of Health Sciences administration once informed me that they did not even give a second look at marksheet below 80% aggregate. And look at how right he was; a van driver’s daughter with 84% couldn’t get admission -- the only option offered to her father was to accept the self finance seat, which the poor fellow could not afford even in his dreams.

Anyway, we submitted the admission form with documents, which included the most crucial and most important domicile certificate, which had the column requiring me to fill in the place from which my father migrated!

As we all remember clearly, the days we used to go to DMC and afterwards, following the events each day. The first floor canteen -- just as we entered the college gate, the samosa and that tasty, warm doodh patti and the shor sharaba of youth (now I somehow hate loud noises).

Then came the controversy of 20 free marks of NCC, making it tougher for some students to get into medical college as their merit would go down but that anti-NCC campaign paid off! And NCC marks were scrapped.

But I just cannot recall why a meeting attended by admission-seeking students was addressed by one young, political leader sort… and somehow his statement "... give us control on Karachi, we will build roads so shiny like glass.” I wonder why that statement got stuck in my memory.

It was such a thrill, the day of interview. Straight away, I can’t remember how many days elapsed between submission of form and interview. Names were called according to merit and just the original documents were checked and we got into professional career.

Yes, it will get quite long but it is worth writing, as I took the challenge of professional education in a much better way than few of the other classmates. First prof.: the best! And believe me, the basics we did were excellent; the three D's of Anatomy: discussion, dissection, and diagrams --the pillars of Anatomy. I'm lucky to have met my friend, Kasim (HR) and Owais and we formed own (study) group.

Intentional Tragedies

The events in life that take place suddenly without any pre-amt thought are labeled as accidents, and those events taking course with knowingly outcomes are intentions. Accidents can be avoided but they can’t be prevented! Intentions can be prevented and be avoided.

In our political culture, there is hardly any leader who thrives on good intentions. Three elements in our country’s political chain are synonym; power, authority and misuse. A leader here is defined as one who has all the resources available to him, has people positioned at right places to manipulate at right times, has the uncanny ability to change stance whenever and wherever it pleases and suits his interest.

Most of the political figure of present era we face each day have intentions not compatible with interest of a common man so what they think benefits their personal gains, they intend to achieve. For the purpose of the same, the only way to reach the goals, power becomes their tool. Once getting there, they get authority to manipulate all the rules and regulation coming their way, weather it is constitutional or legal.

The reasons given every time something done at government level, weather be it taxation, price hike of any basic amenity of the common man they justify it “in the interest of the nation” pretext or that “we have taken some painful decision for better future”.

It is a common practice for the so called “ruling class” to ask for big sacrifices from the common man, and when sacrificing their own interest comes into focus ,the privileges are strongly demanded. In the most toughest and trying times the nation faces, they are “the only” cool customers, unnerved, unperturbed by the events. Because even in the worst case scenario, they have the tickets ready all the time to “fly away” to their “home land”.

Time comes and goes. Tragedies occur, mistakes made, but what is learnt from them always remains a big question mark in our politics. For me what has been observed, they never learn for the bad days they leave behind to moan. And history repeats itself for the better, and who benefits this time around is the lone common man. so he thanks almighty for the relief he was waiting for because it is him, who controls every event, every moment. He has given wisdom to mankind but he waits until they poorly and rarely use it.

The one and only reason which is clearly visible to naked eye and mind is the wrong notion of remaining at self created throne for ever and more. Refusing to believe that like every other thing in this universe, culminating to its fateful end, the people placed in power must reach their demise. Now it is upto them to choose between the gallows or the glory!