Wake up call

8226; The series 8216;The killing cotton fields8217; by Sonu Jain goes to the bottom ...

8226; The series 8216;The killing cotton fields8217; by Sonu Jain goes to the bottom of the problem. It is certain to make the authorities sit up and take notice. The Indian Express shows what real journalism is.

8212; Pranav Sachdeva New Delhi

Not on a Saturday

8226; I was shocked to read 8216;Don8217;t call it sycophancy8217; IE, February 4, by Jayanthi Natarajan. By putting the views of such sycophants on your page you have devalued the day8217;s paper. You believe in giving a level playing field to all opinions but, please, not on Saturday8217;s edit page. I wait for the Saturday columns, including the one by Shekhar Gupta, very eagerly. I have been reading your newspaper since 1974 when I was in SSC, and that doughty fighter, Ramnath Goenka, was still around. I have been advocating till today to anyone who listens to buy a copy of IE, just for the spirit of freedom that runs through it.

8212; Bharat Sethia New Delhi

What about Shoaib?

8226; While accusing the Indian team of violating the spirit of the game Inzamam conveniently forgets that it is he who has done so by criticising a legitimate action. He also forgets how a Pakistani bowler had obstructed Sachin in Kolkata from completing the run and had him run out. Even in this series Shoaib Akhtar has been chucking the ball and shooting beamers at the bodies of players yet Inzamam chooses to doze off.

8212; Udita Agrawal New Delhi

A moral line

8226; In the West, the ongoing debate revolves around the concepts of 8216;freedom8217; and 8216;liberty8217;. Every individual has the right to freedom of thought, livelihood, marriage and choice of religion. However, there remains a moral barrier that no one can cross for fear of harming others. This was exactly the mistake the Danish paper made when it published the cartoon representations of the Prophet. The newspaper believed that 8216;democracy8217; grants it the 8216;right8217; to insult Muslims in the name of freedom of expression. It is clear even in the West, there are varying moral limits and that not all standards are the same.

8212; Md Ziyaullah Khan Nagpur

Stretching a right

8226; The right to free expression is the essence of democracy. But it must not be stretched to the point of hurting the emotions of others. Such incidents
foment separatist tendencies and facilitate terrorism. Thus, artistic and intellectual aspirations must be fulfilled without antagonising any community.

8212; Anuja Seith New Delhi

A babu thing

8226; Rewarding sycophants and loyalists in the bureaucracy is a game our politicians have mastered. The career graph of Naveen Chawla, however, still stands out. Babus are quick to see the writing on the wall and those who blindly toe the line of their political masters can hope to be rewarded with post-retirement placements, all principles of fairplay and independence of decision-making notwithstanding.

8212; Inder Nath New Delhi