• In ‘Godhra riots: We were in govt, both at Centre and in Gujarat’ (IE, May 9), surprisingly Pramod Mahajan does not say anything about bringing those responsible for the riots to book. — Majnu Babu Bangalore • This man, whose vocal chords seem to have been paralysed for over three years, now describes the “incidents after Godhra tragedy” as an “accident”. Did hundreds of defective gas cylinders burst at the same time? Did two thousand Muslims slip on ice and impale themselves on sharp weapons, or else land on blazing fires? An accident, indeed. — Mukul Dube On e-mail Crime upon crime • Pamela Philipose’s ‘An indecent proposal’ (IE, May 9) is an excellent write up. I fully appreciate and agree with her points. — R. Pitchumani Chennai • I agree fully with the writer. Our society, like many other societies, is shamefully male dominated though our scriptural theory emphatically proclaims the equality of all human beings. Rape is a terrible crime. The reward of marriage for rape is a yet more horrible crime. What kind of judges even listen to such proposals, I wonder. — Sankar Rao Mopidevi Rockville Ignore Laloo • The allegations levelled against the Election Commission by Laloo Prasad Yadav’s favoured bureaucrats should be completely ignored. In these days of corrupt institutions or independent institutions which have become puppets in the hand of government, the classic example being CBI which opens, closes and reopens cases against individuals based on whims and fancies of ruling government, the EC has stood out. Like the Supreme Court, it protects the basic right to vote of each and every citizen in the country and thereby contributes largely to seeing that wily politicians like Laloo Prasad Yadav, do not subvert democracy. — Hirva Trivedi Mumbai Do they read him? • Thomas Friedman's articles are very insightful. I wish more people in the US read him and try to reassess their views of the world. — Anup K. Chakraborty On e-mail Insecure capital • This refers to your report on the gangrape of a girl in the capital (IE, May 9). I am deeply pained to read about the increased sexual assaults against women in the capital. If this is the condition in the capital, I am sure rural areas have a graver picture to show. Men need to be sensitised on the issue, women need to be taught self-defence mechanisms. Police and other authorities must take stern measures to make the country safe for us. — Kalpana New Delhi
