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New Delhi

• Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee’s reluctance to take action against those responsible for burning trains shows that hooliganism has gained acceptance by the state. The moment law and order becomes a political bargaining tool,the guilty only get emboldened and respect for the law takes a beating.

— A.N. Sharma

Ghaziabad

Madam speaker

• The choice of a woman as speaker of the Lok Sabha will likely inject much needed dignity in a group as raucous as our parliamentarians. Here’s wishing Madam Speaker Meira Kumar a successful tenure,and luck in taming the Lok Sabha.

— P.C. Khan

Delhi

• The Congress’s choice of Meira Kumar for Lok Sabha speaker proves yet again the dominance of the identity factor in Indian politics. For parties in power,political interest has always been above institutional interest. Even our presidents are elected and celebrated for being “women”,“Dalit”,“backward”,“Muslim”,” Sikh”,“Christian”,etc,and not as persons of calibre and competence. Meira Kumar’s selection is nothing but sheer political tokenism.

— M.C. Joshi

Lucknow

Pakistan crisis

• You have rightly stated in your editorial ‘The Lahore test’ that the current offensive of the Pakistan army in the Swat Valley and adjoining regions serves as a litmus test for the country’s approach to the Taliban. The enemy Pakistan now faces will stop at nothing in trying to impose a medieval and barbaric code on that country. Thus,it is a must that Islamabad goes all out against the jihadis and not rest on its gains in Swat.

— Dilbag Rai Chandigarh

Educated on reform

• This refers to the article ‘Set the campus free’. The agenda for educational reforms is yet to be announced by the new government at the Centre. Advancement in the structure of higher education has always been neglected. The number of students who opt for higher education abroad is increasing. The cost of education in the universities in foreign countries is exorbitant and not affordable to the average population. The system of education in our country must be refurbished to keep parity with global standards of education. The University Grants Commission must play a proactive role in making the educational system more comprehensive.

— N. V. Unnithan

Mumbai