Left is right—that is, in fact, the message of the assembly elections, in a nutshell (The Hammer Bangs Down, May 22). The cpi(m) may now act smug and question the Election Commission for showing an inordinate interest in stalling "scientific rigging" to please the opposition, but it better not forget that the accusation also came from its own big ally at the Centre—the Congress. This only shows the degree of absurdity in Indian politics and the inbuilt contradictions within the upa. After the resounding mandate given by the people of Rae Bareli, Congress president Sonia Gandhi did well to distance herself from the hardcore sycophants who requested her to shoulder the burden and glory of India. As for Jayalalitha, superstars Sarath Kumar and his wife Radhika failed to add any heft to Ammameter.
Raj Bharadwaj, Mumbai
Your cover visual with the title Keep Left was superb. It conveyed not just the post-poll picture but the totality of the present political mood in India. The picture of Prakash Karat reflects the victorious and self-confident mood of the new generation. He looks as if to the future of India—with humanistic spirit and determination. Manmohan Singh’s gesture portrays the humble and total surrender of the country at the altar of some unseen power. The third figure, that of Sonia Gandhi, is positioned as if she is unable to decide which way to proceed. Jointly, the trio trigger the basic question to the readers: "Where is India going? Where should India go?" My congratulations to Outlook.
E.P. Menon, Bangalore
Sonia’s victory in the recent poll reaffirms her popularity with the masses, but does it prove that the nac post she held was not an office of profit? Prudently, your coverage on her was uncharacteristically brief and subdued this time.
R.N. Kohli, New Delhi
In a democratic country, who can prevent anybody from forming a party (The Ridge and The Green Belt)? Actually it will be good for Muslims if they form a separate pan-Indian party. It can save them from being victims of votebank politics. They can work to better the living standards of the community, provide them better education and jobs. Only, they should not be too rigid with old dogmas. Muslims should work to free themselves from the system of triple talaq, and give freedom to women. Last, but not the least, they should adopt family planning. It would only help create better harmony between them and the Hindus.
Shiv Kumar, Mumbai
The emergence of the audf shows a maturing polity as Indian Muslims have always been taken for a ride by all political parties. A robust community at the time of Independence, they later got bogged down. If a party can be formed to protect Dalit interests, why not a formation of Muslims? Parties like the audf have no divisive agenda, their poll success is proof enough.
Mohd Shoaib, New Delhi
What a wily politician M. Karunanidhi is (The Colour TV Works)! So, all of us in TN will get free idiot boxes, eh? Who cares if one in two houses does not have power.
M. Mustafa, Bangalore
One good result at the end of a freebie-promising spree in TN: coalition politics has set in.
C.K. Subramaniam, on e-mail
If our netas are really keen on reservations in the medical sector, the government could perhaps set up new medical colleges or turn some existing ones exclusively for the protected class where general candidates would be barred. These colleges should be the hospitals of first choice for ailing politicians. In fact, while they are at it, the upa could, in addition to the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, set up another house of equal status called the Dalit Sabha whose members would be only from the protected class. Approval of the Dalit Sabha would be a must for all bills. As for the hrd ministry, it can be renamed Dalit resource development ministry. Who’re these politicos trying to fool? Protection is the biggest fraud perpetrated on the people of this country to secure votebanks.
Dr P. Chakravarty, Delhi
One look at the police mercilessly beating students and medicos in Mumbai and Delhi and you’re chillingly reminded of the mean machine the Brits have left behind. Even after half a century, the police force retains the same enthusiasm to crush anyone who dares to oppose the men in power. Only the colour of the skin of the person shouting orders has changed.
Rajeev Sinha, Gurgaon
Public memory is rather short in our land. Which is why the General Maliks of this country think they can get away with half-truths even on matters of national security (The Lie Nailed, May 22). Failure of intelligence has traditionally been the scapegoat for failures/lapses of the armed forces. While we do not hold any brief for our intelligence agencies, it may be recalled that there were reports, in the wake of Kargil, of how the army’s helicopter resources meant for vigil on the LoC were instead being used by the generals and their families for pleasure jaunts. Gen Malik also owes an explanation to the people of this country as to what serious business detained him in Poland—a country of no military significance to us—and why he did not return (as would have been expected of an army chief) till May 20, 1999, even after receiving reports of large-scale intrusion in the Kargil sector.
M. Das, Raipur
One of the main reasons intelligence inputs are not taken seriously is that they come in the company of thousands of generalistic, unactionable reports generated only for the purpose of covering the tail of the intelligence agencies. See the regular high alerts (sic) sounded before national events, visits of dignitaries, etc. More pointed and specific actionable intelligence is what the security forces require and deserve. If we have to learn a lesson from history and remedy this situation, we should stop these witch-hunts and honestly get on with the job of correcting ourselves.
A.K. Sharma, Chandigarh
Kargil was won at a great cost—over 500 lives lost. There is much credit the nda government can claim, but this one will remain a blot.
S. Prasad, Santa Clara, US
It’s amazing how our media has started playing safe. Why would you call the situation in Chhattisgarh a civil war-like one, when it is clear that the state has created a force of semi-clad, semi-armed, semi-literate poor adivasis to fight the Naxals (The Shy Peace Hunter, May 15)? Haven’t you heard of too many proxy wars around the globe to misread what’s happening in Chhattisgarh? What Nepal went through recently was a civil war-like situation when the king’s army was fighting the demonstrators on the streets and the Maoists were waging their own brand of war for people’s liberation. But in Chhattisgarh, the state’s strategy seems to be to make one adivasi kill another. The nhrc can’t question the mass killings then and you’re saved the ignominy Modi faced in Gujarat. It’s a clever strategy evolved by trigger-happy treasure-hunters who know that under the pretext of civil war in the Bastar region, the dense green forest would be burned down, and under the embers would be land which could easily be auctioned to rapacious entrepreneurs to mine or to use it for some other purpose. The war-like facade would also keep friends from the Left shut. Right now they are busy analysing the heady mix of satyagrah and Maoist theory that met some success in Nepal. I still worry about Bastar, not long ago famous only for its hillocks, rivers, and jungles. This was the time when some famous and other not-so-famous photographers and documentary filmmakers competed with each other to capture Bastar’s beauty!
Amit P. Singh, Ghaziabad
The Maoist problem has three dimensions—social, economic and political. Fighting against corrupt government employees, delivering instant justice and providing ‘employment’ to frustrated rural youth are some of the strategies Maoists adopt to woo people into their fold. But if the Maoists genuinely want to ‘heal’ the system, it must be through ballot, not bullet! They must eschew violence, take up mainstream political activity, win elections and achieve their long-term goal, if any. The so-called Salwa Judum might prove to be a double-edged sword. It’s true: how long can unarmed villagers suffer the Maoist outrage mutely? But a weaponised citizenry is never a great idea in the long run. Instead, the Centre must strangulate arms supply from across the borders in the East and West. Without this oxygen, the Maoist movement too would lose steam and crumble!
K.M.G. Vivekanandam, Madurai
Your story Lost in a Pile of Cash (April 24), while referring to Tata Consultancy Services, states, "In case of bpo/IT firms, where attrition rates are still as high as 40 per cent, new incentives like marital bonds between colleagues are being introduced to increase employee loyalty. So if you are working for an Infosys or a tcs, and you get married to a colleague, there is a marriage gift waiting for you. In tcs, it’s Rs 1 lakh each for the husband and wife with a foreign jaunt thrown in." We would like to categorically state that tcs does not have any such HR policy, nor does it provide any incentives, monetary or otherwise, for employees to marry within the organisation.
Phiroz Vandrevala,
Executive V-P, TCS, Mumbai
Thank you for highlighting the plight of the banana in our country (Going Bananas, May 22). We are indeed fortunate in having countless varieties of the fruit. You don’t mention it, but Kerala’s another state which enjoys the infinite bounty of the banana. There’s a lot of land under banana cultivation in south Kerala which extends to parts of Tamil Nadu. Unfortunately, lesser-known varieties are not cultivated en masse because of poor market value. Commercial production demands varieties that can earn revenue. That apart, the banana remains all-purpose; not just the fruit, even its inner stem and flowers are considered delicacies. Why, give it some proper research, and the rest of the plant could come in useful as biofuel.
Jeevan Kuruvilla, Vellore
Ah, what a solace to read Shuddhabrata Sengupta’s defence of ‘phati-purani Dilli’ (May 15). But does Delhi at all need to be cushioned against such crappy allegations smeared all over her by a bunch of equally crappy yet weighty celebs chosen at random? Even if, for a moment, one concedes some cogency in the line of criticism of this chosen few in their tirade against this city, then how come for this entire bunch of da Cunhas, Des, Choudhurys, et al, as far as fancy and free invitations go, Delhi is never door ast?
A Genuine Delhiite
Your article Chinna Illu? No Big Deal (May 22) was a load of generalisations, and had nothing by way of substantiation. You say "the practice of men having two wives is not uncommon in Andhra Pradesh..." Do you have any numbers? Or again, "...most government departments are ripe fields for bigamy, and a lot of women employees find nothing wrong in being the ‘third wheel’." Really? What corroboration do you have? Did you even speak to anybody?
Srinivas Rao, Delhi
Perhaps you should have spoken to the newly-elected CM of Tamil Nadu, Thiru M. Karunanidhi, who knows a thing or two about multiple wives.
Kumudini Tamirasa, Chennai
I thought Outlook was great only for its political reportage. I was pleasantly surprised to see its recent sports reporting, be it the Dhoni profile (‘I Don’t Overspeed’, May 22) or an earlier feature on cricketers from small towns (Awadh All-Stars, May 15). So much is usually written about cricketers from larger cities, it’s good to see a national magazine willing to look beyond the narrow metro footprint, and feature success stories from smaller towns. I grew up in Ranchi, and I can see how your features can help promote growth and a positive spirit amongst youth living in the lesser known and often forgotten areas of India.
Punit Modhgil, London
Vinod Mehta need not tolerate any more tantrums from Editor (An Editor’s Whims, Delhi Diary, May 22). All he needs is a male E2 (Executive Editor), train, cultivate and discipline him from the start. Editor will feel gradually marginalised. He might even take it out on E2 but Mr Mehta would have ensured him physical protection. Left with no choice, Editor might follow E2’s lead and try to outdo him in pleasing his master. He may also realise that any irrational behaviour by him might render him home (job) less. Good dog sense would then prevail upon him and Mr Mehta’s home will be a happy Editors’ Guild.
P.K. Srivastava, Ghaziabad
For heaven’s sake, Vinod, get him a wife!
Wendy Chaves, Mumbai
It’s sad to note Mr Mehta give Editor’s hapless victims just a fleeting reference. Like most dog-owners, he fails to understand the trauma a ‘stranger’ undergoes when bitten by a dog. Ask me, bitten on the face by a "friendly" Alsatian when all of 18 months. Some doctors even attribute my stammering to this early trauma.
Nandagopal Rajan, Chandigarh
Apropos Vinod Mehta’s Delhi Diary (May 22), it’s not just curious but unbelievable too that an Outlook hand had access to some career-damaging information on Pramod Mahajan and did not release it (His Own Undoing). For an anti-bjp Outlook, it would have been too precious to let go.
Raghu, Boston, US
One shouldn’t speak ill of the dead, but it was just his bad karma that eventually caught up with Mahajan. He might have worked sincerely for the bjp’s growth, but he also brought disrepute to the party and the rss with his money culture and corrupt ways.
George James, Mumbai
In Ambassador’s Journal, J.K. Galbraith (The Witty Professor) compared his life as US envoy to India to his counterparts’ in Europe. He talked of one who "approached all problems with a closed mind and an open fly. I suspect, however", he added, "that being ambassador to India is the nearest thing yet devised to a male chastity belt." Predictably, some of his best barbs were reserved for Krishna Menon who, he wrote, "can take any position and argue for it ruthlessly with a certain moral indignation and peripheral vagueness which make him invulnerable."
Lalit Mohan, Gurgaon
I was intrigued by Mr Mehta’s allegation that "the nba is not beyond exaggerating data" (Delhi Diary, May 1). Have instances of such exaggeration ever been documented? Every fact-finding committee that’s gone there, from the World Bank’s 1992 Morse Committee to the recent GoM led by Saifuddin Soz, has come back with news more horrific than the nba could cook up.
Ashima Sood, Ithaca, US
