Kai dhamaal kela re, khup mazaa aala! Dont be surprised if this is what greeted the Nala Sopara rioters, when they triumphantly returned to pay respects to their big boss, and why not indeed. Think of the crores of rupees worth of free publicity the party got post those 15 minutes of carnage.

No need for creating those costly ad campaigns, no need to hire expensive PR agencies, no need to do any constructive work (how boring is that) we in the media have given a free spin to the otherwise degenerating party. We have announced to the world their new leader is no sissy, that he is actually alive and literally kicking (women and children too!).

And the truth is these guys dont give a rats arse what you and I feel about the incident all that matters is that their core constituency, the frequent voters, now know the boys can still kick arse big-time (no matters whose arse and for what reason), and thats enough to get the vote banks rolling.

There are enough losers in this world, people who believe terrorising the common man is a sign of mardangi. Perhaps the time has come to stop giving free press to that virulent party.

Perhaps the time has come to cut the free power supply. Next time, we in the media should not address that party by its name; we should simply report the crime and the usual non-prosecution of those involved. If we cant stop them, at least lets not promote them.

anil@mid-day.com