This refers to Shekhar Guptas timely and lively piece Please do not play with the AFSPA (The Sunday Express,September 19). The AFSPA is meant for specific use in extraordinary internal situations and is not arbitrary,as the army chief has also pointed out.
The demand for completely withdrawing the AFSPA is fraught with enormous national security risks. However,there could be a case for reviewing its archaic provisions and making it a pragmatic one in tune with the current situation,without losing its real spirit. The fact that even the all-party meet could not resolve this volatile issue speaks volumes about the need for continuing with it in the national interest.
S.K.Gupta Chandigarh
Will to power
When a sympathetic critic of C.Raja Mohans credentials in strategic affairs accuses the UPA of having squandered some of the best years in the history of Indias external relations,it is time to sit up and take notice (Drawn in at the borders,IE,September 18). There is drift and confusion in our defence strategy and foreign policy. While China has dramatically transformed itself diplomatically and militarily,we have regressed. Our problems are not the lack of financial resources or technical and military expertise,but the absence of political will as the writer rightly observed. Is anyone in the UPA listening?
M.Ratan New Delhi
Judgment day
Apropos the editorial Memory,history (IE,September 18): while violence must be shunned by all parties to the Ayodhya dispute,it has to be resolved one way or the other. To belittle the Ram Janmabhoomi movement as rabble-rousing by fringe elements like the VHP or the Bajrang Dal would be simplistic. It was the only genuine mass-based movement in the history of free India when the usually divided Hindus came together. Marxist explanations that call it an expression of economic discontent are inadequate. However,a mutually acceptable solution would be preferable. The courts verdict and the litigants response will be a test of our maturity and ability to peacefully resolve contentious issues. Political parties,we hope,will spare us their attentions this time.
Ajay Tyagi Mumbai
Keeping calm
There is a fear that the verdict to be pronounced on September 24 on the demolition of the Babri Masjid could potentially erupt into violence,given its emotive power for Muslim and Hindu right-wing groups. It is difficult to predict how religious fanatics will react to the judgment. However,the very fact that the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court rejected the plea to defer the verdict is heartening. At a time when the foundations of Indian democracy are shaky,the bench will be conscious about wording the verdict in a way that will not inflame passions and will assuage the feelings of both parties. The issue transcends the strict interpretation of law.
H.R.B. Satyanarayana
Mysore
