Thank you for putting Broken Foot—Unfolding Inequalities by the brilliant artist Prabhakar Kamble on the cover (October 4). A picture speaks a thousand words. This one also reminded me about the migrant labourers of our country, often reduced to mere statistics of exploitation.
R.M.S. Kannan, On E-Mail
This refers to your column in the cover story package (Individual Memory in a Post-Truth World, October 4). Wrapped in a pile of ash Grey, burnt, dead ash Was lying a pall of youth, a female youth And a pile of dreams, hopes, vision, desires Punished by the pallbearers Of an ancient civilization Supposedly the best in the Mortal universe. From Kathua to Hathras and from Delhi to Dausa, disfranchised Dalits, Adivasis and Muslims are victims of this post-truth world where lies and more lies have become the hottest selling cakes. In the kind of society and polity that we are fast becoming, even justice for victims will remain wrapped in the pall of post-truth.
Rakesh Agrawal, Dehradun
This refers to your cover story on how “a caste census could radically alter the political map of India” (Caste Iron Furnace, October 4). In fact, a caste census may open a Pandora’s box. It is true, however, that benefits of reservation have not been distributed equitably among all the groups that have been lumped together in the Other Backward Classes category. If a caste census could identify the most deprived sections among the OBCs, it could be useful in ensuring that the benefits of reservation reach those who need it the most. But the 50 per cent cap on overall reservations decreed by the Supreme Court must continue.
D.B. Madan, New Delhi
This refers to the column by Amandeep Sandhu on how the choice of a Dalit Sikh CM from the neglected Puad region “queers the pitch for the grand old party’s rivals” in Punjab (Congress Bowls a Caste Googly, October 4). Meanwhile, Navjot Singh Sidhu dropped a bombshell by resigning from the post of Pradesh Congress Committee president. The unceremonious exit of Amarinder Singh from the CM’s chair had come as a jolt to most Congressmen, who felt their high command could have handled the Captain’s exit more delicately. Jat Sikhs in particular are deeply embittered by his abrupt resignation. They were also not too pleased with Sidhu’s elevation as state party chief or Charanjit Singh Channi’s installation as chief minister. Infighting has erupted within the state unit between Sidhu’s supporters and his detractors. Indeed, the Congress that tried to pre-empt other parties that were promising a Dalit CM or deputy CM is now hoist with its own petard. The assembly polls due early next year will prove to be an acid test for the party.
Kangayam R. Narasimhan, Chennai
Voters in Punjab will have a difficult choice to make while exercising their franchise in the assembly polls next year. Should they give another term to the faction-ridden Congress? Or give the mandate to a political newbie that is hardly a decade old? Or give top priority to what can best ensure a congenial relationship between the state and the Centre?
Arun Malankar, Mumbai
In the column Silence! Nation-building in Progress published in the issue dated October 11, it was mentioned that the writer Kuldeep Kumar is a former special secretary, Cabinet Secretariat. He is a bilingual journalist and a Hindi poet who writes on politics and culture. The error is regretted.
