Lost links

Sir — Only two of Calcutta’s tram routes have been active lately. Certain depots, such as the one in Kalighat, which have been lying unused for a long time, could have been utilised to improve tram services in South Calcutta. Additionally, trams from the Kidderpore, Kalighat and Tollygunge depots are currently disconnected from the Nonapukur workshop and, as such, have been deprived of periodic maintenance for some time. Such unused depots need to be revived for the convenience of citizens, the reduction of traffic snarls, and the promotion of environment-friendly transportation. Another way to ensure better tram connectivity in South Calcutta would be to connect the Gariahat depot to the Gariahat crossing.

Ankur Rao, Calcutta

Changed tune

Sir — The chief minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, has said that she does not think that the prime minister, Narendra Modi, is aware of investigative agencies being misused to target Opposition parties (“Mamata spares Modi from agency blame”, Sept 20). Banerjee’s softened stance is a pleasant surprise. However, she has not exonerated the Bharatiya Janata Party completely. The allegations of the Opposition parties would only hold true if no incriminating evidence was recovered from them during the raids by the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate. This is not always the case. Moreover, using State agencies to target political opponents is a legacy of previous political dispensations, which are now in the Opposition. Interestingly, no party has ever mooted the idea of granting complete autonomy to investigative agencies.

K.V. Seetharamaiah, Bengaluru

Sir — Mamata Banerjee exonerating Narendra Modi of the charge of using investigative agencies to target the Opposition brings to mind the adage, ‘bhooter mukhey Ram naam’. It beats reason how such raids can be called ‘misuse’ in the first place when hard cash has been unearthed at the properties of Trinamul Congress leaders. This is the same Banerjee who lost no chance to claim that the ED was encroaching upon the privacy of ‘honest party workers’ and that Modi should be removed from the post of the prime minister. The ED may be on to some big fraud, forcing Banerjee to take a step back. If Banerjee is indeed as clean as she claims, she should step down from her post because of the corruption in her party. But that is unlikely. It could also be that by giving Modi a clean chit and blaming other BJP leaders — the ED and the CBI report to the Union home minister, Amit Shah — Banerjee is trying to drive a wedge in the saffron party.

Bidyut Kumar Chatterjee, Faridabad

Sir — Central agencies, such as the CBI and the ED, are probing several cases in West Bengal in which TMC leaders are implicated as per the orders of the Calcutta High Court. Mamata Banerjee questioning these investigations is tantamount to disregarding the judiciary. Her allegations that businessmen are leaving Bengal for fear of these agencies also do not seem to hold water. They are running away from the state owing to the syndicate raj, extortion by political goons, and the dismal law and order situation in the state, among other reasons. The chief minister, who has been a vocal critic of the Narendra Modi government since 2014, has now blamed a section of BJP leaders, rather than Modi, for misusing Central agencies. This is surprising. Her clean chit to Modi suggests that she is trying to protect TMC leaders under the ED’s scanner.

S.S. Paul, Nadia

Battle stations

Sir — The Aam Aadmi Party has appointed its Rajya Sabha member, Raghav Chadha, as the party’s Gujarat in-charge alongside Sandeep Pathak for the assembly elections due later this year. Gujarat definitely needs a change in governance. The euphoria around the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Gujarat Model has abated. The BJP has only stood by big players with deep pockets. It remains to be seen if the AAP is a suitable substitute for the BJP. Only time will tell if the AAP’s strategy of providing freebies works. Further, while freebies may help initially, citizens should be given employment opportunities to enable them to be independent. Irrespective of whether the AAP comes out on top, it needs to put up a fight as a credible opponent since the Congress has lost all ground in the state.

C.K.R. Nathan, Ghaziabad

Other criteria

Sir — The editorial, “Backbencher” (Sept 20), highlighted India’s abysmal ranking on the Human Development Index. Perhaps if the United Nations Development Programme introduced parameters such as fanaticism, demagogy, tokenism, populism, unscientific temper and megalomania, among other things, India might then shoot up the ranks.

P.K. Sharma, Barnala, Punjab

Disrespectful

Sir — Bengaluru FC must be congratulated for winning its maiden Durand Cup title by beating Mumbai City FC 2-1 at the Salt Lake Stadium. But it was shocking to see the West Bengal governor, La. Ganesan, push the Bengaluru skipper, Sunil Chhetri, out of the spotlight during the presentation ceremony and another guest push the player, Sivasakthi Narayanan, aside. The hubris of the political guests goes against the spirit of the Durand Cup. It is time that organisers ensured that players are treated with respect.

Jayanta Datta, Howrah

Skilled storyteller

Sir — Hilary Mantel was an immensely skilled author known for her originality. Her death is an incalculable loss to British literature. The trilogy on the life of the Tudor politician, Thomas Cromwell, was her most famous work.

S.A.K. Sinha, Gaya