Then and now

It speaks poorly of our polity that parties in general and the ruling party in particular have to be policed by the election c...

It speaks poorly of our polity that parties in general and the ruling party in particular have to be policed by the election commission like a school teacher minds errant students in school. CEC Lyngdoh8217;s indictment of the Chhattisgarh government speaks volumes about the health of our democracy.

Way back in 1957, Asoka Mehta, on the way to Sunderbani got stranded near Akhnoor when his ramshackle vehicle broke down. He was going to address an election meeting. An army officer traveling in the army jeep recognised Asoka Mehta and offered him lift. The officer was also going in the same direction. Mehta thanked him but declined the offer saying that on an election visit he could not accept a ride in a government vehicle. He braved the sun without complaint. He had earlier declined the hospitality of the Raj Bhawan for the same reason.
Asoka Mehta did not need any model code of conduct to uphold the democratic tradition. No wonder that he, a leader of a minuscule party, enjoyed more respect than modern day leaders of far bigger political establishments.
8212; Suresh Chander, On e-mail

So slow

If Safdar Hashmi8217;s killers get sentenced after nearly 15 years, what about the countless cases that have not acquired such a high profile? This speaks of the inefficiency and sloth of our judicial system.
8212; Pandit, On e-mail

Sport is it

This refers to your story 8216;19-yr-old8217;s world record journey began from Vadodara mosque8217; IE, November 5. Keep it up, make us proud. This again shows that during these troubled times sports can bring the country together. I guess now we can dream of getting the world cup next time.

I think we also need one more consistent batsman like Rahul Dravid to provide the ultimate killer combination to the Indian team.
8212; S Rizvi, On e-mail

Jogi8217;s antics

What do the pseudo intellectuals, BJP baiters, NHRC, Minority Commission et al have to say about J.M. Lyngdoh8217;s comment upon the role of the Congress and in particular about its Chief Minister, Ajit Jogi in the poll run-up in Chhattisgarh? Or can they only ever criticise the BJP?
8212; Pandit K., On e-mail

Let cricket be

Reading Omar Kureishi8217;s 8216;Don8217;t Play Games With Cricket8217;, IE, November 5 should give us a moment of pause. We must think about the tragedy cricket is facing in the sub-continent. I don8217;t think cricket is responsible for the stalemate in Indo-Pak relations, then why is it facing the brunt?

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Why has cricket become the symbol of nationalism? It may make some sense if the governments associate hockey with their perverted concept of nationalism; hockey being the national game. But the Pakistani hockey team visited India without a murmur.

I am also appalled to find that every time there is any talk of having Indo-Pak cricket matches not only words with diplomatic overtones like 8216;resumption of cricketing ties8217;, 8216;Indo-Pak friendly series8217;, 8216;goodwill tours8217; etc. are used by the media and politicians, but cricket, ironically, becomes part of Confidence Building Measures between the two nations. It would not be far-fetched to say that if any animosity arises out of cricket matches it is only because for far too long politicians of both countries have entwined cricket and politics.

As a lover of the game, my humble plea is: please leave cricket alone.
8212; Mohamad Junaid, Aligarh