Think anew
Sir — The Bard might have thought that not much depends on a name but the authorities responsible for renaming West Bengal’s Bagdogra airport seem to disagree. The airport authorities are torn between renaming it after the Noble laureate, Rabindranath Tagore, and the famous mountaineer, Tenzing Norgay. Tagore’s residence at Mongpu is now a popular tourist destination and several public buildings in Darjeeling are named after Norgay. Neither Tagore nor Norgay thus needs more recognition. Naming the airport after lesser-known personalities from North Bengal, like the social worker, Rangu Souriya, or the mountaineer, Sherpa Nawang Gombu, might make people aware of their contributions to country as well.
Ananya Thapa,
Siliguri
Tense ties
Sir — The Canadian foreign ministry has alleged that the Indian Union home minister, Amit Shah, was involved in anti-Khalistani activities in Canada. This will further affect the bilateral relationship between India and Canada (“India: Canada’s claim baseless”, Nov 3). The Indian ministry of external affairs had earlier denied any responsibility for unsanctioned activities in Canada. Things between the two nations might escalate to a point of no return as Canada has been refusing to share any evidence to back its accusations.
However, Shah might not come out of this mess unscathed as these allegations are serious enough to destabilise the government at the Centre. Shah is close to the prime minister, Narendra Modi, and if his involvement in the matter is proven it would taint the Bharatiya Janata Party-led coalition government. Canada and India should aim to reach a resolution in order to secure bilateral ties. A strain in their ties will alienate India from other Western allies like the United States of America.
P.K. Sharma,
Barnala, Punjab
Sir — The United States has labelled the allegations made by the Canadian deputy foreign minister, David Morrison, linking Amit Shah with anti-Khalistan activities, as “concerning” (“Canada’s Shah claim a matter of concern: US”, Nov 1). The Indian external affairs ministry has dismissed these insinuations as “absurd and baseless”.
While deposing before a domestic parliamentary committee, the Canadian national security and intelligence adviser, Nathalie Drouin, and Morrison admitted to approaching The Washington Post with these charges. This hints at an attempt to sensationalise the delicate issue by embarrassing the Indian government. Adding fuel to the fire, Canada has now called India a major cyber threat on a par with China, Iran, Russia and North Korea.
S.K. Choudhury,
Bengaluru
Sir — The Indian government’s laid-back attitude regarding the allegations against its Union minister is disheartening. Canada has left no stone unturned to publicly mar India’s reputation to appease its huge Sikh voter base.
K. Nehru Patnaik,
Visakhapatnam
Sir — If Amit Shah truly targeted Khalistani separatists in Canada, he has irreparably damaged New Delhi’s diplomatic relations with Toronto. Narendra Modi should ponder whether Shah should continue to be one of the faces of the BJP-led Centre or be removed from his post.
Arun Gupta,
Calcutta
Dangerous thrill
Sir — ‘Dark tourism’ — the practice of visiting places associated with death, tragedy, or suffering — poses serious threats to safety and ethics (“Darkness visible”, Nov 3 ). Some tourists, for instance, reached Digha and adjacent beaches in West Bengal and Odisha recently to witness the destruction that Cyclone Dana would cause. Disregard for safety instructions during such disasters needs to be punished. Strict enforcement of curfews in danger zones and engaging local youth as evacuation volunteers can perhaps remedy the situation.
Prasun Kumar Dutta,
West Midnapore
Sir — Cyclone Dana was scheduled to make landfall along the Bengal-Odisha coast on October 24 and 25 — weekdays when people would be required to turn up for work. Yet many rushed to Digha to watch the incoming cyclone. As the residents of these coastal areas fought to survive the fury of nature and were worried about their houses and livestock, tourists invaded towns in Midnapore to experience the thrill. This kind of privileged and careless attitude should be condemned.
Kajal Chatterjee,
Calcutta
Biased outlook
Sir — After a Muslim candidate from the Samajwadi Party, Naseem Solanki, visited a temple in Kanpur at her Hindu supporters’ request, the priests washed the temple with “1000 litres” of water from the Ganga (“Temple washed after Muslim visit”, Nov 3). Even a local Sunni cleric, Mufti Shahabuddin Razvi Barelvi, criticised Solanki as Islam did not support idolatry. While religion should not be mixed with politics, the actions of the priests were wrong as well.
T. Ramadas,
Visakhapatnam
Sir — The incident of a temple being ‘purified’ because it was visited by a Muslim brought to mind a recent video by the stand-up comic, Varun Grover, who pointed out that although religious leaders claim that god creates everything, they themselves condemn people from other religions as lesser beings. Casteism provides an added excuse to discriminate against people.
Anthony Henriques,
Mumbai
Sir — The Samajwadi Party leader, Naseem Solanki, might have offered prayers at a temple under pressure from her party. The SP wants to appease both its Hindu and Muslim voter bases. This issue has been blown out of proportion by religious leaders.
Fakhrul Alam,
Calcutta
