Letters to the editor

Encoding dress8226; I WAS pained to read your editorial sarcastically commenting on the circular issued by Bihar8217;s chief secretary reg...

Encoding dress

8226; I WAS pained to read your editorial sarcastically commenting on the circular issued by Bihar8217;s chief secretary regarding the dress code for civil servants 8216;Garments of gov8217;ment8217;, IE, August 29. I strongly feel that the media should support this, as it will definitely add to the modesty and dignity of otherwise undignified, corrupt and rude image of civil servants. I think dress is the mirror of one8217;s personality and character, and to dress decently according to one8217;s own occupation, culture and religion gives one identity and recognition. That is why Gandhiji chose khadi and Gandhi topi. There is nothing wrong, in my view, in prescribing a reasonable dress code for civil servants to project a disciplined, dignified, morally correct and 8212; let me add 8212; intellectual look. How would you feel if the Indian army is allowed to wear half pants, short skirts and Bermudas or our schools discard the dress code or the chief secretary appears in baggies? Common dress code is a great equaliser. I am of the view that all educational institutions should have a dress code befitting Indian culture. Today under the influence of Western culture TV, cinema and the electronic media are all out to misinterpret and distort the social and cultural values of this land. A lack of decent dress habits among our youth is a fallout of this distortion. I think government officials, politicians and the so-called cultural ambassadors, aided by the media, should take up the responsibility of promoting the right dress habits for every walk of Indian life. Why just talk of civil servants?

8212; Vitull K. Gupta, Bhatinda

Drag the guilty

8226; This is apropos of your editorial, 8216;Bhagalpur syndrome8217; IE, August 30. The two policemen of Bhagalpur are neither insane nor are they rotten apples in the 8216;Police basket8217;; they are the true and underlying face of our law and order machinery, which by and large treats the common man, and more so the poor and the helpless, like animals and slaves of the medieval feudal days.

The incident of chaining a culprit and dragging him behind a motorcycle may be brutal and inhuman but in our society it is neither the first nor would it, painfully enough, be the last barbarian act committed by the police force. It was the same Bhagalpur police that had thrown acid on and blinded 31 undertrials. This is our police8217;s way of ensuring 8216;swift and effective8217; justice, as also of ensuring its image of unimpeachable authority among the masses. The question is whether our law can really be swift and effective in dealing with such custodians of law. Paying some compensation to the victims, suspending the guilty, instituting an enquiry and then consigning the whole issue to oblivion has been the practice of our administration. For a change let these policemen undergo a 8216;tit-for-tat8217; punishment. Only that might send a corrective message to their fellow law keepers.

8212; Ved Guliani, Hisar

Left8217;s commandment

8226; NEWSPAPER reports say that Congress is considering delaying the discussion with IAEA, as required by the Left. Before accepting this commandment, our prime minister must realise that a day8217;s delay in concluding agreement with IAEA means one day less for President Bush to push the bill in both Houses of US Congress to consider the bill before their Christmas break. The bill then may not be considered for the whole of 2008. This way only China will gain but India will lose out with the help of the Left parties. The PM has to ensure that such a situation is averted.

8212; R.P. Desai, Mumbai