Opinion Road blocks

— N. Ramamurthy,Chennai

Fully reloaded?

THE editorial ‘The Pranab moment’ (IE,June 16) seems to suggest that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh did not have the opportunity to initiate reforms while Pranab Mukherjee headed the finance ministry. Both are efficient administrators. The real problem was that neither leader had the courage to speak out or take bold decisions. Even if the PM now takes charge of the finance ministry,it is unlikely that he will prove to be effective. He is bound to be bullied and overruled by some of his colleagues in the Congress and forced to follow populist policies for the sake of getting more votes. Nevertheless,this might be the moment to silence troublesome UPA allies. Once they know they are not indispensable,they will stop browbeating the Congress.

— Hema

Langeri

Historic blunders

THAT West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had much to learn about the art of managing finances is evident from the dire economic straits her state is in. But it seems she also has much to learn about the art of politics. It was naive of her to look to the Samajwadi Party for support in her effort to show up the Congress. She also tried to provoke the Left by naming Somnath Chatterjee,who has fallen out with his former party. As a result she has worked herself into a corner. The exit of a disillusioned Didi from the UPA at this juncture could be a boon for the Congress in many ways. Not only could Banerjee be made a scapegoat for the UPA’s inaction,but with the exit of a mercurial ally,the Congress could also find the time to take on the opposition. It might even be able to patch things up with Banerjee’s bitter ally,the Left.

— R. Narayanan

Ghaziabad

Changing jobs

PRANAB MUKHERJEE does not have much to his credit as finance minister and now seems desperate to change jobs. Being president might indeed be less taxing. However,there seems to be a real danger of the prospective president becoming yet another puppet in the hands of the Congress. It is time India had a real president,not someone being rewarded for loyalty to the Congress.

— Sunil Melwani

Pune