Opinion Letters to the editor: Solving a mystery
This refers to ‘Sonia picks Mallikarjun Kharge over “unwilling” Rahul as Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha’ (IE, June 3).
Solving a mystery
This refers to ‘Sonia picks Mallikarjun Kharge over “unwilling” Rahul as Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha’ (IE, June 3). Now that the first session of the 16th Lok Sabha is under way, a mystery is set to be solved. There has been much speculation about whether the yet-to-be-elected speaker would grant the Congress party — which has 44 MPs in the Lok Sabha, well below 10 per cent of the total membership of the House — status of the official opposition and designate its leader the leader of the opposition.
Although the office of leader of the opposition was not created by the Constitution, a 1977 law of Parliament that governs the salary and allowances of the leader of the opposition stipulates that she must belong to the party with the greatest strength next to the ruling party’s and must be recognised as such by the speaker/ chairman of the House. There is no mention therein of the 10 per cent rule. Moreover, as the Congress party bagged 19.3 per cent of the total votes, it rightfully deserves to be recognised as the official opposition, notwithstanding its numbers in the Lower House.
— Hemant Kumar
Ambala
Waste of time
This refers to the editorial ‘The control panel’ (IE, June 2). I commend Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s decision to scrap the practice of forming the EGoMs and GoMs as they were a waste of time, money and resources. Most GoMs did nothing except postpone their meetings time and again. In practice, they were constituted to divert attention from the burning issues of the day. But Modi must ensure that there is no concentration of authority as that would breed authoritarianism.
— R.K. Kapoor
Chandigarh
Sloth of the system
APROPOS of ‘Crisis in Siachen: Two crashes in nine months, army troops face transport crisis’ (IE, June 2), it is a matter of great concern that ageing equipment has not been replaced due to the slothful decision-making process of the UPA governments. Whenever a procurement was finalised, it was common for it to be reversed because of allegations of bribery.
— R.A. Maslekar
Mumbai
No time
This refers to ‘Hooked up’ (IE, June 2). The opening up of India’s first technology rehab centre in Bangalore highlights the problem of this new type of addiction. People, including little children and teenagers, have become too dependent on their gadgets. Their lives seem to revolve around the internet and they stop engaging with society. We should be concerned that people no longer have the time to cultivate personal relationships.
— Gaurav Gupta
Delhi
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