Women146;s hour

8226; The true commitment of each and every political party on the women8217;s reservation bill will now be cl...

8226; The true commitment of each and every political party on the women8217;s reservation bill will now be clear. No party has till now allocated 33 per cent of its tickets for women in these general elections. Perhaps it is time that the women of India took matters into their own hands and voted only for women candidates, no matter what their political affiliation. Perhaps it will take such desperate measures to make political parties field more women candidates in future elections.

8212; T.R. Balakrishnan On e-mail

Stay aloof

8226; A few days back American Secretary of State Colin Powell had made a declaration in Islamabad that Pakistan would now be a major-NATO ally of the US, thereby enabling Islamabad to enjoy some military benefits. And now, in an effort to placate India, the US has expressed its willingness to explore the possibility of declaring India also a major non-NATO ally. India, however, does not need this kind of compensation from the US. In any case, India must be watchful, as America8217;s enhanced ties with Pakistan could change equations in the subcontinent.

8212; K.L. Batra On e-mail

8226; It would be silly to think that America is going to be India8217;s ally. India can only pursue trade relations with the United States. In fact, India8217;s potential to become a great military and economic power is bound to upset the Americans.

8212; Kerisnaji Rao On e-mail

No comparison

8226; Mani Shankar Aiyar8217;s article 8216;Is Vajpayee another Nehru?8217; IE, March 16 is distasteful. Asking whether Vajpayee is another Nehru is like asking whether Tendulkar is another Bradman. They Nehru and Vajpayee both are great men from two different, though overlapping eras. They both were the answers to the legacies of two difficult phases through which the country went. The first phase was the consequence of the British misrule in Nehru8217;s time. The second phase is the consequence of the long Congress misrule. It is ridiculous for Aiyar to talk about non-alignment in the new world order.

8212; B.K. Rajput Pune

Only vengeance

8226; The assassination of Sheikh Yassin has complicated an already tense situation in West Asia.

8212; D. K. Vidhyarthi On e-mail

Keep Saurav

8226; Renewed calls for Saurav Ganguly to be dropped from the Indian team are ridiculous. He has done a fantastic job as a captain. He has inculcated a never-say-die attitude in the team.

8212; K. Thej On e-mail

And Laxman too

8226; Critics should not be premature in asking for V.V.S. Laxman8217;s scalp. After all, he was the one who did India proud in Australia.

8212; Zubair On e-mail