Polling in change• Contrary to your claim that only performance is the key to victory in the recent assembly elections to five states (‘It all adds up’, IE, May 12), the West Bengal elections have proved that it is the electorate’s lack of desire for change that counts more than governance. As against this, the electorate in Kerala has shown a desire for change knowing well that the Left combine will be no better than the ousted Congress combine. Past assembly and general elections testify to the fact that it is more a desire for change that goes into removing governments rather than any other factor.— G.S. Kulkarni, DelhiWrong assumption• This refers to ‘Left in the Centre’ by Harsh Sethi (IE, May 12). To say “Achyutanandan and Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee seem to inhabit different universes” is wrong. Also to paint Achyutanandan as a hardliner and party secretary Vijayan as a liberal is not correct. Achyutanandan is no ideologue. He will adapt to changing party policies. His fight has been against corruption which, in the name of liberalism, has corroded a section of the party leadership. He is a disciplined soldier of the party and would carry out liberal policies without allowing anybody to indulge in corruption.— N. Kunju, DelhiElection lessons• Your report,‘Left gets muscle, UPA strength’ (IE, May 12) was a correct assessment. The lesson for Jayalalithaa and others is, do not trample upon the rights of the common man because he, ultimately, is king in a democracy. Though the Congress suffered a setback in the Kerala, it has made gains in Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry. It has not done badly in Assam, and in the Rae Bareli Sonia Gandhi won by a record margin. But this election was a bad omen for the BJP, highlighting its failures except for the three-seat gain in Assam. The most humiliating for it was no doubt the loss of the security deposit of the ‘desi devar’ at the hands of the ‘videshi bhabhi’.— B.K. Chatterjee, FaridabadHow?• When the establishment is in denial about the illegal presence of Bangladeshis in India, the report on the Assam elections is indeed courageous when it states that “Muslims — migrant Muslims from Bangladesh — are in a majority in at least 20 of Assam’s 126 Assembly constituencies while they are a deciding factor in another 20” (‘Ajmal scent of success’, IE, May 12). The question is: how did these migrants get to vote in the election?— R.P. Subramanian, DelhiBengal’s secret• With the Left Front retaining power in West Bengal for the seventh time, the Opposition had no option but to fade into oblivion. This victory has put forward the notion that the people here want development and hope to see it through a reformist chief minister. The ignominious performance of Trinamool Congress proves that people have lost faith in political mavericks like Mamata Banerjee. Kudos to the CM for leading from the front, involving a new generation in politics and shedding the old skin.— Joyeeta Dey, KolkataFamily seat• Sonia Gandhi's Rae Bareli “win” was expected. This is a ‘family seat’ for the Nehru-Gandhis for more than four decades. Strong traditions among rural folk even in voting patterns is not new. Remember Lalu ruled Bihar for 15 years!— K.L. Khandekar, Vadodara
