Opinion Letters to the editor: Full circle
Congress leaders who are now up in arms against Prime Minister Narendra Modi now have no moral right to question his actions.
In 2004, Governors Vishnu Kant Shastri, Babu Parmanand, Kidar Nath Sahani and Kailashpati Mishra were shown the door by the UPA government, purely on the grounds that they had been appointed by the NDA under Atal Bihari Vajpayee (‘Maharashtra Governor Sankaranarayanan lets it out: Home Secy called asking me to quit’, IE, June 19). Congress leaders who are now up in arms against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing him of whimsically removing state governors appointed by the UPA, now have no moral right to question his actions. After all, they are witnessing today the very same developments that BJP leaders had complained about 10 years ago.
P.G. Menon
Chennai
Hard lessons
This refers to the editorial, ‘Our own rank’ (IE, June 19). The fact that not even a single university, including the IITs, our prestigious centres of technical education, has made it to the list of top 100 universities in the world should be a wake-up call for the country’s administrators. Now is the time to take initiative in removing the ills that plague the higher education system in the country. We may disagree with the manner in which universities have been ranked by international agencies, but that cannot explain away the malaise that affects our universities. Rather than becoming centres of excellence in research, our universities are doling out degrees and graduates with no employable skills. Removing the universities from the clutches of the political class and infusing them with greater autonomy in their academic and administrative functioning is vital to making them more competitive globally.
— M. Jeyaram
Sholavandan
Fall of Spain
The era of tiki-taka ends with Spain’s shocking exit from the 2014 FIFA World Cup (‘FIFA World Cup: We need to reflect on this calmly, says Vicente del Bosque’, IE, June 19). The defending champions failed to realise that other teams have evolved new strategies to counter possession football. Spain’s loss in the Confederations Cup was a warning of what was to come, but the Spaniards did not heed it and change their tactics. They paid dearly for that. The ageing Spanish armada also lacked vigour and accuracy in attack. This World Cup belongs to those who are masters in attacking football. The rain of goals illustrates this.
— Kiran Jose
Kadanad
The hammer strikes
The report, ‘Bhabha’s house auctioned for Rs 372 crore’ (IE, June 19), was shocking. The crusade by scientists like C.N.R. Rao to convert Homi Bhabha’s home, Mehrangir, into a museum, was laudable. The government must formulate a policy to preserve such iconic buildings as part of our national heritage. One can only hope that the Indian courts now move against this thoughtless auction.
— Ashok K. Ashu
Patiala
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