Justice for whom?

Fali S. Nariman's comparison of a litigant with a 8220;poor fish8221; 8216;Who cares for the litigant?8217; IE, December ...

Fali S. Nariman8217;s comparison of a litigant with a 8220;poor fish8221; 8216;Who cares for the litigant?8217; IE, December 8 is apt. Few can afford the cost of litigation in India given the time taken to get decisions. Many suits are frivolous and meant only to cause harassment. If a careful and compassionate bench can weed out such litigation at the admission stage itself, it would do commendable service to both itself and the litigants.

8212; J.M. Manchanda New Delhi

Congrats!

8226; Congratulations for winning the 8216;Sanctuary Award8217; for your special coverage on national parks. The award once again reinforces the principle of 8216;journalism of courage8217;, that the Indian Express stands for.

8212; Amit V. Sengupta Kolkata

In whose interest?

8226; An 8 per cent interest rate on the EPF would have been just right. The maximum rate of interest for cent per cent safe deposits is not more than 8 per cent 8212; on the Public Provident Fund, and various schemes like the National Savings Scheme, Kisan Vikas Patra, Post Office Monthly Scheme etc as also on taxable bonds of the Reserve Bank of India. The only exception is 9 per cent for the special scheme for Senior Citizens Deposit with a cap of maximum of Rs 15 lakhs. Therefore, it is against the public interest to give more than 8 per cent on EPF.

8212; Mahesh Kumar New Delhi

No returns

8226; The EPF and PPF are the main sources of investment by the salaried and working class in India wherein they can expect a better return. Where PPF is only optional, EPF is the only retirement benefit other than the gratuity for the salaried class. Of late, the government has been depriving this section of people of their true yield and return by reducing the interest rate. A few years ago, the interest on EPF was around 12 per cent which, as it stands now, is 8.5 per cent. Further, from the FY06-07 onwards these investments will be taxed on maturity. Is this not backstabbing the salaried class by the government?

8212; C.R. Ramakrishnan On e-mail

Political state

8226; I support the views expressed by Prakash Jha 8216;All Biharis are political animals8217;, IE, December 8. Bihar has always been in the forefront of social and political movements, in spite of its poverty. We Biharis are primarily political animals. And we deserve credit for showing the rest of India that we too have aspirations and hopes, just like the people of any other state. Those who fail to fulfil our aspirations will be shown the door.

8212; Anjani Kumar Tiwari Motihari

The tough life

8226; The upward trend in the BSE Sensitive index over the last couple months is being projected by the media and the Union finance minister to mean that the country8217;s economy is in very good shape and that life has become easy for the common man. This is far from the truth. Despite the fall in the international oil prices, there continues to be an all round increase in the cost of living index in India, inflation is on the rise, the Indian rupee is becoming weak against the dollar and there is no relief whatsoever for the 8216;aam adami8217; even after one and a half years of UPA rule with the help of those who claim to be the messiah of the poor.

8212; G.S. Kulkarni Delhi