Lessons for Left
•Saubhik Chakrabartis My comrade vs your comrade (IE,October 2) was wry but incisive. Communism has never owed loyalty to anything other than its ideology. To communists,pure nationalism has been an anathema. During our freedom struggle,the CPI was neutral to the British; today,Indian communists are indifferent to abrasive Chinese posturing. The Balco episode is no exception. Communists are extremely uncomfortable in democratic set-ups. But under Indias well-functioning democracy,they were compelled to run state governments. To set up a modern education system,new-age industry and effective administration was against their grain. US bashing couldnt offer them sustenance beyond a point. Events like Nandigram were not event or place-specific,but reactions to unfamiliar challenges to a political entity born of the French and Russian revolutions and other class struggles. Yet,the democratic umbrella under which Indian communists function has also enabled an osmosis of democratic values into the red stream. A hard lesson is being learned by the Left. Hopefully,a wiser Left will emerge in our polity.
R. Narayanan Ghaziabad
Dividing for votes?
• This refers to the editorial Permit Raj (IE,September 30). All political parties have formulated their so-called ideologies to woo voters. The BJP is obsessed with Hindutva. Lalu Prasad and Mulayam Singh Yadav play the secular card. Now,its Raj Thackeray whos all for the Marathi Manoos. Such thinking reflects his fossilised and sectarian mindset. How can he foist his agenda that non-Maharashtrians cant settle and work in Maharashtra? It suggests he wants a state for Maharashtrians only,which goes against the spirit of the Constitution. Whether MNSs electoral strategy will benefit the Congress-NCP alliance or not will be known only when the results are out. But the fact remains that such an agenda is a recipe for disaster.
S.K. Shah New Delhi
Doctors in the wrong
•The editorial Doctored? (IE,October 2) raises pertinent questions about the standards of our medical profession. However,the AI managements decision to ask striking pilots to obtain medical certificates from the airlines doctor should reveal the truth. The management should take strict disciplinary action against those who submitted fake certificates. The MCI should also take exemplary action against the doctors concerned.
S.K. Gupta Chandigarh
Reviving Shimla
•This refers to the editorial The hills are alive (IE,September 29). Shimla is known the world over not only from tourists point of view but also for its historic buildings. However,such crumbling buildings have reduced tourist interest. The thoughtless new construction is also discouraging. The need is to revive Shimlas prettiness and stop such construction,to increase tourist interest for economic growth. Shimla should not be disfigured,such beauty is the source of happiness.
Rajjonandan Vaish
Aligarh
