Opinion Make it public
I entirely endorse Rajeev Dhavans statement in his article Attorney Soldier (IE,May 4) that the opinion of the attorney general should be made public.....
• I entirely endorse Rajeev Dhavans statement in his article Attorney Soldier (IE,May 4) that the opinion of the attorney general should be made public. In my article published in a national daily on October 27,2002,when I was attorney general,I had expressed the view that the public should not be denied the right to know the opinions of the first law officer of the country and the reasoning on which they are based except when the opinion deals with sensitive matters of security and confidential intelligence. We swear constantly by freedom of information. Let us practise what we preach.
Soli J. Sorabjee
Former Attorney General for India,New Delhi
Democratic depths
•Shekhar Gupta has castigated independents in both practical and normative terms in his column The partyless wonders (IE,May 2). But the idea of party-less democracy was also fervently advocated by the late Jayaprakash Narayan,who was an outstanding socialist thinker and no dictator. Democracy presents limitless possibilities,one of which is meaningful intervention by those who are not hidebound by the limitations of partisan politics. Guptas advice may be apt for some independent candidates who have taken a break from professional careers for politics. But J.P. Narayan of the NGO,Loksatta,has been in the thick of it for over a decade; and his NGO effectively active in areas of governance,as Gupta himself mentions. There are others who have given a large part of their active life to social service and have entered the fray as independents to creatively intervene in the political process. They may not be well-known names,but they are no less serious practitioners of politics. All of them have been through the heat and dust of politics for years. They have entered the electoral fray because they respect politics and they want to rescue it from the big bosses. They may not succeed for now,but there is no reason why they should give up the fight.
N.R. Mohanty
Noida
Poor show
•This refers to the editorial Protect the protectors (IE,May 4). The governments apathy towards its paramilitary and security personnel has certainly worsened their plight. At a time when its spending crores modernising security forces,our paramilitaries are deprived of basic facilities. They are not salaried slaves and they work in conditions harder than anything other professionals face.
Manoj Parashar
Greater Noida
Rescuing Nepal
•NEPAL has progressed from a Hindu kingdom to a secular republic (Post Prachanda,IE,May 5). Democracy was on display when Prachanda became prime minister after elections last year. However,it would have been difficult for Prachandas party to leave behind its insurgent past. And a Nepal tilting towards China at Indias expense is worrisome. Its now in our national interest to rescue Nepal.
Jai Prakash Gupta
Ambala
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