Good day Dear Brothers and Sisters,Its Tuesday, June 14th 2011 Birthday wish for pet dog raises eyebrows Nitin Yeshwantrao, TNN, Mar 15, 2011, 08.24am IST THANE: A unique hoarding put up by well-wishers of `Mickey` to celebrate his 18th birthday on Monday left politicians and their karyakarta s in Thane red-faced. That`s because the celebrity photograph on the display board was that of Dr Ashok Bapat`s pet. Mickey`s photograph alongside his canine well-wishers was on display opposite Thane Municipal Corporation and Pachpakhadi junction — the two key spots in the lake city that are used by politicians to convey their loyalty and affection to their leaders with the help of giant-sized hoardings. The billboard put up by Bapat and his associates from Early Birds, a group of morning walkers, is an attempt to put a spotlight on the issue and trigger a debate. The group took necessary permission from the civic authorities for Mickey`s birthday hoardings and paid Rs 64 for two. Seeing through the agenda, unknown miscreants vandalized one of the hoardings less than two hours after it was put up. "My dog has turned 18 and our group decided to celebrate the occasion. If public space can be utilized by politicians to put up their photographs, the same can be done by the common man. I had taken all permissions and so why should anyone object,`` asked Dr Bapat. Dr Mahesh Bedekar, a local activist, added, "Celebrating birthdays by putting up cutouts and hoardings is turning into a norm in the city these days. So what is wrong if we put up two hoardings to celebrate the birthday of our dog?... If a leader observes discipline, the same will be emulated by the people looking up to him." Three Cheers for Dr. Bapat