Modifiers in Gujarat

Shekhar Gupta makes it bsolutely clear in his piece, 8216;Modi versus Modi8217;, that Narendra Modi will not earn a thumping majority for his party in the ongoing elections.

8226; Shekhar Gupta makes it bsolutely clear in his piece, 8216;Modi versus Modi8217;, that Narendra Modi will not earn a thumping majority for his party in the ongoing elections. For this, he alone must be held responsible. He has alienated a large number of his party MLAs and been rude to leaders like Keshubhai Patel. In this connection, it is relevant to note that ever since it tasted power at the Centre, the BJP has ceased to be 8220;a party with a difference8221; and has become 8220;a party with differences8221;. Gujarat holds the mirror to this state of affairs. Should not the party have put Modi in his place when he was spinning out of control? Was it really in the party8217;s interest in Gujarat to have acceded to Modi8217;s every tantrum and ignored those sections of the party in the state when they were voicing their disenchantment with his behaviour? No dispassionate observer of the political scene of Gujarat can endorse Modi8217;s one-upmanship to the exclusion of his seasoned colleagues, both at the state and national levels.

8212; M.K.D. Prasada Rao

Ghaziabad

Modi vs media

8226; Shekhar Gupta writes well in 8216;Modi versus Modi8217;, but his surmises are amiss. He has honestly understood the leadership in Modi but falls short of admitting that 8216;here is a politician at last who has the political will and who is a no-nonsense administrator8217;. This is probably because he is reminded of his domain. Today it is not 8216;Modi versus Modi8217;, but 8216;Media versus Media8217;. The media are scared that Modi could get re-elected and that the people of India will start perceiving him as the future leader of India. Once he becomes a pan-Indian leader, there will be no more nonsense or lack of political will and then the media will have to behave.

8212; Kedarnath R. Aiyar

Mumbai

Right jurisdiction

8226; One entirely agrees with T.R. Andhyarujina 8216;Courting limits8217; when he says 8220;to distil judicial power by rigid rules of conduct is not advisable8230;8221;. Some months ago Justice Katju uttered an obiter dicta that any corrupt public servant 8220;should be hanged by the nearest lamppost8221;. One felt then that the hon8217;ble judge was echoing the feelings of the common people. But his latest pronouncement, along with that of Justice A.K. Mathur, that people can get relief by voting those people out, comes as a big disappointment. Not every problem can wait for election results, just as legitimate grievances arising out of the mala fide exercise of power by those in authority, when sought to be framed in litigation, cannot be dismissed out of hand either. Our highest judiciary is charged with the responsibility of ensuring that the Constitution is not violated either by the legislature or the executive.

8212; Prasad Malladi

Nidadavole

Schooling in culture

8226; The shootout at a school in Gurgaon is a matter of great concern as well as shame. This incident has once again betrayed the fact that Indian children are rapidly adopting western values, culture and traditions. Earlier, this kind of incidents were limited to the western world and we Indians were proud of our moral values, which protected our children from going astray. But this violent incident has shown that life for many has changed totally. Now, it is the duty of parents to inculcate the feeling of 8216;vasundheiva kutumbkam8217; global brotherhood as part of Indian culture. If every child adopts Indian culture in its true spirit, there will be no more violence. Our culture has always advocated peace and non-violence.

8212; Saad Ullah Khan

Aligarh