Dark horse
Sir — Elections are always a time of high drama. In the United States of America, for instance, a surprise contestant who goes by the name, ‘Literally Anybody Else’, has entered the presidential race which is essentially a power struggle between Joe Biden and Donald Trump. Dustin Ebey, who is an army veteran from Texas, stated that ‘LAE’ is a symbol designed to express his dissatisfaction with the two contenders. While ‘LAE’ may be just another poll gimmick — no poll manifesto has yet been released — it can perhaps emerge as a popular choice for Americans who are torn between the devil and the deep blue sea.
Meghna Modak, Calcutta
Behind bars
Sir — The Narendra Modi-led dispensation at the Centre has been criticised time and again by several members of civil society for failing to uphold the freedoms of Indian citizens (“Amartya alarm on freedoms”, Mar 28). However, such concerns have fallen on deaf ears and the ruling dispensation has continued to indulge in high-handedness and support police brutality. It is thus heartening that the Supreme Court recently passed an order for adopting a zero-tolerance approach against those police officers who abuse their position of power. Hundreds of undertrials continue to languish in Indian prisons without any chargesheet filed against them. It seems that the only way people can protest against these injustices is at the hustings.
K. Nehru Patnaik, Visakhapatnam
Sir — The Nobel Laureate, Amartya Sen, and other academics have censured the Narendra Modi government for the prolonged incarceration without trial of several journalists, authors, social activists and academics. The wide scope of the anti-terror law, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, has been increasingly misused by the ruling dispensation to rein in its dissenters.
Murtaza Ahmad, Calcutta
Far taller
Sir — There cannot be any comparison between the leadership skills of Jawaharlal Nehru and Narendra Modi (“Benefit of the doubt”, Mar 27). As the country’s first prime minister, Nehru took a number of decisions that were in the best interests of India. But no leader is immune from making mistakes. Nehru’s failure to stop the 1962 Sino-Indian War is proof of this.
Nonetheless, there is a yawning gap between the qualities espoused by Nehru, such as prudence, selflessness, intellectualism, broadmindedness and farsightedness, that shaped Indian democracy, and Modi’s doublespeak, self-serving and partisan behaviour that have resulted in several disastrous decisions like demonetisation and weakened the country’s economy.
P.K. Sharma, Barnala, Punjab
Sir — “Benefit of the doubt” by Charu Sudan Kasturi elucidates how Jawaharlal Nehru’s legacy has been viciously targeted by the sangh parivar. Nehru was an efficient prime minister who steered a newly-independent country through an array of crises that arose from the handover of power by the British raj. Further, the Congress government under Nehru organised democratic elections at a time when many decolonised countries were falling victim to dictatorship. The saffron ecosystem’s criticism of Nehru thus seems a blatant attempt to mask its non-contribution to the freedom movement.
N. Hossain Mallick, East Burdwan
Crucial voice
Sir — The climate activist, Sonam Wangchuk, ended his 21-day hunger strike in support of the demand for special status and statehood for Ladakh and called out the Centre’s reluctance to address the issue (“Show character: Wangchuk to PM, Shah”, Mar 27). Wangchuk has been demanding statehood for Ladakh in order to help protect its fragile Himalayan ecosystem and preserve the indigenous cultures. Wangchuk’s plea that the prime minister and the home minister rise above petty politics and be counted as ‘statesmen’ with ‘farsightedness’ should not go unheeded.
Jahar Saha, Calcutta
Free fall
Sir — The editorial, “Tricky issue” (Mar 26), rightly argued that “[t]he rise of polarisation has also resulted in the creation of fictitious narratives attributing population growth to minority groups”. The disinformation that Muslims may outnumber Hindus in India is being spread to damage India’s unity.
A 2021 study conducted by the Pew Research Center found that the religious composition of India’s population has remained largely stable. Further, the total fertility rate of Muslims has declined from 4.4 to 2.6, while that of Hindus decreased from 3.3 to 2.1. People should use these facts to fight disinformation.
Sujit De, Calcutta
Sir — The main reasons behind India’s declining fertility rate are surging inflation and the rising cost of living. The government should take steps to promote in vitro fertilisation and reduce infant mortality to arrest the negative momentum.
Kiran Agarwal, Calcutta
