True reflection
Sir — Concealing one’s blemishes has become a compulsion owing to the continuous bombardment of beauty hacks, make-up fads and face filters on online platforms. However, this preoccupation with ‘perfection’ has created unrealistic beauty standards, leading to low self-esteem among users. So much so that searches on the Reddit forum, ‘AmIUgly?’, where users tend to share close-ups of their imperfections in an effort to obtain a rating of their physical appearance, have gone up a thousandfold in recent months. Given the fact that even the magic mirror failed to make Snow White’s stepmother, the Evil Queen, the prettiest of them all, perhaps people should stop soliciting responses from such platforms and focus on enhancing their inner beauty.
Shriya Khanna, Noida
Bad idea
Sir — Once again, the Narendra Modi-led dispensation floated the idea of ‘one nation, one election’ and formed a high-level panel to look into this matter (“One-election balloon after ‘special session’ minus agenda”, Sept 2). Simultaneous elections are not a novel concept. In fact, it has been a long-standing agenda of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Simultaneous elections do have several advantages (“One nation, one election: Gains and challenges”, Sept 3). First, this would reduce election-related expenses; the huge saved amount can be redirected to developmental activities. Second, the use of security companies and poll-related infrastructure will come down significantly. Further, politicians do not have to canvass for votes all year round and can focus on discharging their electoral responsibilities. However, there are disadvantages as well. For example, local issues will be dwarfed by national concerns.
Sravana Ramachandran, Chennai
Sir — With less than a year to go for the general elections, the Centre has suddenly decided to consider simultaneous elections. This can destabilise the multi-party electoral system of the country. The fact that the Centre has not taken into consideration the views of other stakeholders for such a crucial constitutional issue is proof of its autocratic style of functioning. Further, the government notification mentioned that the simultaneous polls are in ‘the national interest’. This indicates that the panel’s recommendations are a foregone conclusion. Similarly, summoning a special session of Parliament without disclosing the agenda belies the government’s claims of ensuring transparency.
S.K. Choudhury, Bengaluru
Sir — After much hullabaloo over the uniform civil code, the idea of ‘one nation, one election’ is now dominating the public discourse. The government has maintained that simultaneous elections are a prevalent practice in several countries such as Germany, Hungary and so on. But it would be unfair to compare the electoral systems of these countries to a diverse democracy such as India. The government’s motive behind introducing ‘one nation, one election’ is to convert India into a two-party system like that of the United States of America. This will effectively destroy regional parties.
Moreover, questions pertaining to the logistics of simultaneous elections need to be answered: how will the government manage the massive deployment of Central troops during a countrywide election? What happens when president’s rule is imposed in any state?
Jang Bahadur Singh, Jamshedpur
Sir — No praise is enough for the Rashtriya Janata Dal leader, Tejashwi Yadav, for asking the Centre to ensure ‘one nation, one income’ instead of pursuing parochial imperialist agendas such as one nation, one election or one language or one party or one leader and so on (“Seats formula by this month: Nitish”, Sept 3). The concept of simultaneous elections eludes logic. In the event that the government is dissolved before the completion of its five-year term, would there be another round of polls across the country? Millions of Indians are still deprived of basic amenities. The government should work to ensure their well-being by introducing a national basic income.
Kajal Chatterjee, Calcutta
Great heights
Sir — The decision of Uday Kotak to step down as the chief executive officer and managing director of Kotak Mahindra Bank has taken everyone by surprise (“Uday Kotak steps down as CEO of bank”, Sept 3). With him at the helm, the bank emerged as the fourth-largest private bank in the country.
A journey that started with invoice discounting has now forayed into life insurance, general insurance, asset management and securities. Kotak is also known for building a solid rapport among his employees. Whoever steps in Kotak’s shoes has his or her task cut out of carrying forward this legacy.
Bal Govind, Noida
Insensitive remark
Sir — Andrea Giambruno, the partner of the Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, recently suggested that women should avoid rape by not getting drunk and losing their consciousness. His remarks are not only insensitive but also blame women for the violence. This cannot be justified. Sexual violence is a crime which is not influenced by the attire or the level of intoxication of the victims. Women have as much right to enjoy themselves without the fear of being attacked as anybody else.
Amarjeet Kumar, Hazaribagh
Clipped wings
Sir — According to a recent survey of 338 bird species in India, 60% have seen a decline in population (“Grounded flight”, Sept 3). This is deplorable. Humans are losing their connection with nature. Not many can identify various bird species native to India barring a few common ones. We should be more proactive about saving our feathered friends.
Anthony Henriques, Mumbai
