Nitish8217;s New Year

8226; The killings of January 1 is no doubt a wake up call for the Nitish Kumar government. The p...

8226; The killings of January 1 is no doubt a wake up call for the Nitish Kumar government. The problem is not simply a law and order one. It is the result of the collapse of institutions in the state. People neither have faith in nor fear from the law. The government of the day has a huge task ahead. It will have to set examples so that the people of the state have faith in their institutions. It will not be all that easy to establish the rule of law in the state, but the incident of January 1 has thrown an opportunity to start working for this.

8212; Rajesh Kumar New Delhi

Silver moment

8226; The BJP has just celebrated its 25 years of existence. For the party it has been a long road in its travel from the erstwhile Jan Sangh, the Janata Party and then to the re-furbished Bharatiya Janata Party. In each of the above transitions, the party had re-cast itself keeping its saffron and communalist agenda intact. It is time now for the chameleon to change its colours again. The BJP8217;s need for change in its external representation to its supporters is demanded since in the current context of societal positioning the party has lost its relevance.

8212; S. Kamat Panaji

Atal8217;s legacy

8226; The decision of 81-year-old Atal Bihari Vajpayee to quit politics of power was long overdue. He should have graciously hung his boots when the going was good. But the BJP, which has in recent years been in dire straits, has been trying ineffectually to use the aging leader as a brand name in a vain attempt to stage a miraculous comeback. Lal Krishna Advani, the other partner of BJP8217;s odd couple, would be well advised to also follow suit and make way someone younger. His cynical statements blaming the Congress for BJP8217;s ills only shows that the aging leader is losing his balance and is also ripe for retirement.

8212; Aires Rodrigues Mumbai

8226; A.B. Vajpayee8217;s announcement of quitting active politics does not shock, since it was expected. His positive image as a shrewd politician will be remembered by the people, particularly the efforts he made to make A.P.J. Abdul Kalam president of India, despite the anti-Muslim sentiments that his party fomented.

8212; Abdulruff Colachal New Delhi

Babu barriers

8226; Beware of the bureaucracy8217;s attempts to control the efficacy of the Right to Information Act 2005. The act can do very little to provide the required in
formation to the people if the information sought is unpalatable.

8212; P. Keshav On e-mail

Tailpiece

8226; Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Lal Krishan Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi 8212;
as BJP leaders 8212; have one in common despite their differences. Bihari, Krishan and Murli are the names of Lord Krishna!

8212; M.L. Garg Chandigarh