Letters to the Editor DGP’s spin on murder probe SIR, ~ This refers to the report, “Parui case: High Court may order CBI probe” (3 April). West Bengal’s DGP, Mr GMP Reddy, has given yet another twist to the investigation of murder charges against the Birbhum Trinamul president, Anubrata Mandal and 40 others. They have been accused of killing one Sagar Ghosh. Mr Reddy has pleaded that he be relieved of the responsibility of heading the court-appointed Special Investigation Team, citing his preoccupation with the Lok Sabha elections. Justice Dipankar Dutta remarked: “Who is the SIT trying to protect? Such attitude of the DGP amounts to criminal contempt.” Justice Markandey Katju, chairperson of the Press Council of India, had once said that ministers and officials “are afraid to speak their minds” and are “terrorised” by Mamata Banerjee’s “unpredictable and whimsical behaviour.” This is West Bengal, where if police officers work diligently, they are likely to provoke the ire of the Chief Minister. Damayanti Sen and K. Jayaraman are two examples. Miss Banerjee had publicly supported Mandal only a day after the Supreme Court had expressed its displeasure over the investigation into the Parui murder. When the SIT members reached Suri, the Chief Minister was addressing a public meeting in Durgapur. In defence of the prime accused, she said: “Keshto (Anubrata Mandal) is sitting here. Many people are after him. He is a good organizer. The Trinamul Congress will defend him.” The speech was in effect a signal to the administration to soft-pedal the investigation. No wonder the police brass is hesitant. Justice Dutta has observed that “an extraordinary situation has arisen and for this, a CBI investigation appears to be the imperative”. yours, etc., s s paul, nadia, 3 april. Blooming errors SIR, ~ Narendra Modi seems to be ignorant of Indian history and facts. At a rally in Rajasthan, he referred to Mahatma Gandhi as “Mohan Lal Karamchand Gandhi”. His name is Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. Bhagat Singh, the revolutionary leader, and two others were hanged in Lahore in 1931 and not in the Andamans, as stated by the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate. He told a rally in Patna that Chandragupta Maurya belonged to the Gupta dynasty and that the people of Bihar had defeated the forces of Alexander the Great. The fact is that his forces never crossed the Ganga. yours, etc., m hashim kidwai, new delhi, 4 april. Key constituency SIR, The monarchs of the oil-rich Middle East countries, including Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, former President of Iran, are, according to media reports, canvassing support for the victory of E Ahmad, the IUML candidate from Mallapuram. They have financed bill-boards, proclaiming their support. It appears that the district of Mallapuram in Kerala is an extension of the Arab world. It was declared a Muslim-dominated district by EMS Namboodripad. An estimated three lakh people of Mallapuram are employed in the Gulf countries. No wonder the rulers feel that they are entitled to have a say in the electoral process of the district. Many women of Mallapuram are married to Arab sheikhs. There is nothing communal about Sonia Gandhi’s meeting with Bukhari, seeking the votes of Muslims. However, there is a communal connotation to the fielding of Narendra Modi from Varanasi ~ a bastion of Hindutva. Surprisingly, the Islamist world’s interest in our elections is not deemed to be communal. yours, etc., n k das gupta, kolkata, 4 april. Hindus, Muslims & Gandhi SIR, ~ This is with reference to Jayita Mukhopadhyay’s article, “Relevance of Gandhi” (27 March). Mahatma Gandhi has never been irrelevant in Indian political history and never will be. But the cardinal mistake of his political philosophy was to blend religion with politics. This can ignite religious sentiment, as witnessed during Partition and the demolition of Babari Masjid in more recent times. The Hindu-Muslim divide was pronounced after Gandhi’s Congress had cornered the Muslim League. Ultimately the two-nation theory led to Partition. Gandhi’s performance after his return from South Africa was amazing. As a “true nationalist, a relentless fighter and mass mobiliser”, his contribution to Indian life in general had once made Albert Einstein wonder if future generations would ever believe that a man like Gandhiji had ever set foot on this earth. His political strategy of non-violent non-co-operation, coupled with the quest for truth, shook the British Raj to its foundations. Unfortunately, Hindus and Muslims failed to rise above their own sectarian considerations. Partition was the greatest political misadventure in the subcontinent. The Mahatma tried his best to bridge the gap between Hindus and Muslims. He was tragically misunderstood by both communities. yours, etc., ganga and santanu das, aizawl, 29 march. Indane-Aadhaar SIR, ~ Four instalments of the subsidy on cooking gas have been credited to ones bank account on the basis of the Aadhaar card. That document is no longer mandatory. The functioning of the Indane-Aadhaar system appears to have collapsed. There is no response to the e-mail messages being sent to the Customer Relations Manager and the local distributor, Patuli Indane. Are they trying to reconcile the accounts after the Supreme Court directive? The Aadhaar system of LPG-distribution should be totally scrapped immediately. The confusion is distressing. yours, etc., ranjan mathews, kolkata 2 march.
Posted on: Sun, 06 Apr 2014 18:34:58 +0000
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