Fruit for thought
Sir — Customising work desks according to one’s personal preferences can motivate employees. This is perhaps why Chinese employees have discovered a unique method to decorate their office desks — they have been purchasing green bananas and watching them ripen at their office desks. The fruits’ transformation from green to golden yellow apparently has therapeutic values and offers a diversion from the daily grind. However, the Bengali bhadralok, who takes great pride in picking out the perfectly ripe fruit, would probably feel anxious at the prospect of the unripe fruit sitting on his desk.
Debanwita Ghosh, Calcutta
Big wins
Sir — The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and other members of the INDIA bloc clinching all 39 parliamentary seats in Tamil Nadu is nothing short of a historic feat (“South winds”, June 7). The alliance also grabbed the lone Lok Sabha seat in Puducherry. The clean sweep has bolstered the alliance’s credibility. It has also shown that Tamil Nadu remains a bastion of secularism, acting as a bulwark against the Bharatiya Janata Party’s brand of Hindutva politics. Several factors, including the cohesion among the partners, have contributed to the alliance’s success.
The BJP was desperate to win in Tamil Nadu with the prime minister, Narendra Modi, making multiple visits to the state throughout the campaign. However, his electoral pitch may have backfired owing to his portrayal of Tamils as ‘robbers’ of Odisha’s wealth and his allegation that the southern political parties hurl insults at the people of Uttar Pradesh.
G. David Milton, Maruthancode, Tamil Nadu
Sir — The saffron party has been able to break ground in Kerala, a state that has traditionally swung between the Left Democratic Front and the Congress-led United Democratic Front, by winning its first Lok Sabha seat in the state (“BJP opens account in Kerala with Thrissur win”, June 5). The result is a reflection of the people’s anger against the ruling LDF.
However, neighbouring Tamil Nadu spurned the BJP completely despite Narendra Modi’s overtures to the Tamils, including the establishment of the sengol in the new Parliament building.
Subhash Das, Calcutta
Sir — The general election results in Kerala highlight a distressing reality. Not a single woman candidate has secured victory in any of the 20 parliamentary seats from the state. This glaring absence of female representation is not just a setback for gender equality but also a stark reminder of the entrenched biases that persist in our political landscape. How can we claim to have made progress when half of the population is systematically excluded from decision-making roles?
K.A. Solaman, Alappuzha, Kerala
The kingmakers
Sir — By deciding to join hands with the National Democratic Alliance, N. Chandrababu Naidu and Nitish Kumar have lost a golden opportunity to save the country from turning into an autocracy under Narendra Modi (“Deal makers”, June 6). Now that they have jumped onto the saffron ship, they should serve as checks for the new government. They should also represent regional interests at the Centre and see to it that states not ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party are treated impartially.
Tharcius S. Fernando, Chennai
Sir — N. Chandrababu Naidu had been written off by critics (“New order”, June 7). His emergence as the chief minister-elect of Andhra Pradesh and the kingmaker in the government formation at the Centre suggests a complete change in his fortunes. Naidu has been known as the ‘CEO CM’ for his reformist policies. Going forward, he must strike a balance between welfare and employment generation.
Bal Govind, Noida
