Vandals Of History Afghanistan's Taliban regime remains undeterred from its hard-line agenda of destroying historically valuable Buddhist idols. A look at the present regime and its slide to orthodox fundamentalism at a time when a drought has ravaged its economy and people.

Taking On the Family
Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Laloo Yadav is once again facing a tough fight for survival--this time prompted by a near revolt in the RJD fuelled by rumours of a dynastic takeover. Ranjan Yadav has emerged as a potential rival to Rabri Devi, enjoying the support of both the party rebels and the NDA allies.

Chennai Confusion
The upshot of the great Tamil circus: Jayalalitha needs Moopanar, but not the Congress.

Creepy Acquisition
With Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha determined to bring corporate payslips comprehensively into the taxman's dragnet, the salaried class is having a few palpitations. For them, it means that a long era of tax-free emoluments is coming to an end.

"Indians lack unity"
Two of cricket's finest brains met for a rare conversation:Bishen Singh Bedi takes on the role of interviewer for Aaj Tak, seeking to get into the mind of Australian captain Stephen Waugh.

Revenge Of the Bears The sudden fall in share-prices points to yet another rigging controversy, and raises questions about the efficacy and credibility of SEBI as a regulator.

COVER STORY: AFGHANISTAN

Vandals Of History

By Zahid Hussain in Kabul and Islamabad and Raj Chengappa in Delhi

For centuries the colossal images of Buddha carved into the Hindukush mountains at Bamiyan with its striking honeycomb rock-cut sanctuaries were symbols of the glory of Afghanistan's ancient past. When the famed Chinese traveller Hsuan-Tsang saw them in the 7th century A.D. he wrote, "Its gold hues sparkle on every side and its precious ornaments dazzle the eyes with its brightness." Since then these standing Buddhas have survived the march of Islam and more recently the two-decade-old civil war that has turned Afghanistan into one of the world's bloodiest battlefields. Now these statues along with hundreds of Afghanistan's precious artefacts are possibly lost to the world forever. They are being brought axe down by a Hitlerian edict issued by the one-eyed, reclusive, Mullah Mohammed Omar, the Amir-ul-Momineen or Commander of the Faithful and the emir of the Islamic Emirates of Afghanistan (IEA), as the ruling Taliban calls it. On February 26, from his mansion in Kandahar, which he rarely leaves, the tall and well-built Omar, just 42 years of age, pronounced the fatwa which was quickly broadcast over Radio Shariat, controlled by his militia. The broadcast stated that the "supreme leader" had ordered, "All statues and non-Islamic shrines located in different parts of the IEA should be destroyed. These statues were shrines of infidels and these infidels continue to worship and respect these icons. Allah Almighty is the only real shrine and all false shrines should be smashed."

The finality and speed with which the announcement was made is typical of the highly secretive, centralised and dictatorial style that has come to characterise the way Omar rules Afghanistan. The mullah brooks no dissent and is used to having his orders implemented unquestioningly. He did not appear to be overly concerned by the widespread revulsion to his action across the world. The UN Security Council described it as "incomprehensible and a wanton act of violence" and told Omar to put a stop to it. US Secretary of State Colin Powell called it "a crime against humanity".

MetroScape
Triple Act
What I would love to do more than anything else in the world is to write another play," says Gurcharan Das. "But I don't know if I have the courage." He should have dollops of it, going by the audience reaction to his 9 Jakhoo Hill--performed to mark the release of Three English Plays by Das --at Delhi's India Habitat Centre
last week.
more...

Looking Glass

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