April 4, 2009 11:46:44 pm
• In 1977,I was younger,fitter and better capable of voting. Back then,people were fed up with the Emergency and many of us believed that a new government would be an antidote to our ills. However,I didnt vote in the end and wasnt disappointed: the unfolding events were distressing. No one was interested in the welfare of ordinary people. The rich got richer,and the poor,poorer. Politics by then had firmly become an instrument of wealth and power. Now,32 years later,things have gone from bad to worse one look at the shifting party allegiances and reformations of alliances confirms that notion. Does the poor mans vote really count any more?
Indrajit Shah
Pune
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Wrong issues
• The Varun Gandhi saga not only highlights our leaders political immaturity but also exposes the BJPs fruitless search for issues. That the partys prime ministerial candidate,L.K. Advani,should draw comparison between Varun Gandhis arrest and that of the likes of Jayaprakash Narayan and A.B. Vajpayee during the Emergency reflects the confusion within the BJP leadership. While the government of the day needs to use restraint in tackling issues relating to leaders behaviour during electoral campaigns,the BJP should learn to move on from the Kodnanis and Varun Gandhis. What it needs is coherence at the national level.
Ved Guliani
Hisar
Not the dead
• This refers to the editorial Graffiti,icons. You have rightly commented that the EC has been picking the wrong fights on the eve of the Lok Sabha polls. The controversy over photographs of people like Tagore,Subhas Bose,etc whose words and ideas still inspire this land should have been avoided. It was symptomatic of the ECs wrong-headed activism. The EC should enforce the model code of conduct and ensure free and fair elections. Still,its good to know that the EC has clarified the order and kept the dead people out of it.
Manoj Parashar
Greater Noida
Long hard climb
• Will a trillion dollars and $500 billion in the IMFs kitty really rescue a free-falling world economy? Despite the hype over the G-20 summit,the outcome seems more of the same medicine. The US economy continues towards a deeper recession despite the Bush and Obama packages.
Shahabuddin Nadeem
Bangalore
The other task
• The sternness exuded in the tone of our PM Manmohan Singh at the G-20 summit was a pleasant surprise. Branding Pakistan as the breeding ground of terror and demanding accountability for its actions was necessary. Indirect references and banalities shall yield India nothing. While we play our part in the recovery of the global economy,we cannot forget our task of bringing Pakistan to book.
Ahim Jurry
Dharamshala
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