• Though the impeachment proceedings against Justice P.D. Dinakaran appear to be a welcome step,whether the cumbersome and long process of impeachment of a senior judge reaches its conclusion is doubtful. There is the similar case of Justice Soumitra Sen of the Calcutta high court.
As one may recall,in 1993,Justice V. Ramaswami was spared impeachment when Congress MPs abstained from voting in Parliament. Since the apex court itself formulated a code of conduct for the higher judiciary back in 1997,would it not be wise for the higher judiciary to strictly adhere to it? The optimal measure could be an indicted judge putting in his papers without facing impeachment proceedings. The reason why our Constitution framers have not provided for an easy and simple process for indicting or removing an errant judge was that they envisioned members of the higher judiciary as individuals who would abide by healthy conventions and precedents.
Hemant Kumar
Ambala
Further steps
• The proposal to penalise dealing officers for delay in citizen services speaks of the governments good intentions. However,along with the procedural hurdles,a major source of delay is a work culture in which not much moves without the offer of a backhander. Whether it is a new ration card or a driving licence,the unfortunate truth is that it is money which makes the mare go. Since the system is perpetuated by the connivance of higher-ups,they too should be implicated in the delays. A separate investigation by the vigilance department into reported cases of grave delay could help much will also depend on how the government fine-tunes the process.
Y.G. Chouksey Pune
Why not?
• The steadfast refusal of the FBI to allowing India to question David C. Headley and Tahawwur Rana makes one suspicious about the US agencys sincerity in curbing international terrorism. It may also give rise to speculation that there are skeletons in their closet itself,which may tumble out during interrogation by Indian agencies.
Arun Malankar
Food for all
• This regards increasing foodgrain prices. It may be possible to generate food security in India if we engage in proper planning of foodgrain production and fair practices in the market. In developing countries like India,the root causes of food insecurity include poverty,corruption,policy these cause unequal access to food,environmental degradation,insufficient agricultural development,barriers to trade and so on. Indias food insecurity will not be serious if we can succeed with a proper distribution policy. But the government has failed to control and regulate the food market.
Ahmed Kabeer
Dharapuram
