Feline chuckle
Sir — Whether or not animals feel human emotions has long been the subject of debate. But surely the lion and lioness, Akbar and Sita, currently housed at the North Bengal Wild Animals Park, are chuckling away at the uproar over them. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad — perhaps suspecting a case of ‘love jihad’ in the animal kingdom — has appealed to the Calcutta High Court that it is blasphemous to keep Akbar and Sita in the same enclosure as it is an insult to Hindu sentiments. The lion and lioness, in the meantime, might be more worried about the fact that they are among the last 600 Asiatic lions and that the fate of their species is under threat from mythical beings.
Chittaranjan Dey, Siliguri
Misuse of power
Sir — The Congress has accused the Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre of freezing the party’s main bank accounts over income tax demands to financially cripple the party ahead of the upcoming general elections (“Cong fire on IT account freeze”, Feb 17). Although the income tax department has given the party temporary respite, such steps highlight how blatantly the Centre misuses State power for political gains. It remains to be seen whether the details of those who purchased electoral bonds to help the Bharatiya Janata Party are really made public. It is this lack of opacity on the part of the Centre and authoritarian steps taken by it that adversely impact India’s image as a democracy.
Aayman Anwar Ali, Calcutta
Sir — The income tax department’s partial freeze of the Congress’s bank accounts on flimsy grounds right before the Lok Sabha elections is evidence that it is acting at the behest of the Narendra Modi government. This is the BJP’s way of paralysing the principal Opposition party in the country. However, given India’s vastness and diversity, it is futile for the BJP to try to obliterate our multiparty democracy.
G. David Milton, Maruthancode, Tamil Nadu
Sir — A day after the Supreme Court declared the electoral bonds scheme introduced by the BJP dispensation at the Centre unconstitutional, the income tax department froze the accounts of the main Opposition party. While the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal has since then allowed the party to operate its accounts for the time being, Rs 115 crore has been kept as lien. The severity of the order points to the weaponisation of laws by the Narendra Modi government to stifle the Opposition. This does
not augur well for democracy.
M. Jeyaram, Sholavandan, Tamil Nadu
Sir — The BJP government at the Centre is trying to financially cripple all other parties in India that pose the slightest threat to the saffron juggernaut.
Murtaza Ahmad, Calcutta
Slain opponent
Sir — The news that the prominent Russian Opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, has died in prison has left the international community shaken (“Putin-critic Navalny dies in jail”, Feb 17). Navalny was a steadfast and uncompromising campaigner against corruption and a trenchant critic of Vladimir Putin’s authoritarian regime in Russia. Putin clearly feared Navalny’s capability to reshape public opinion. In 2020, Navalny survived a poisoning attempt. But he was incarcerated the next year. Putin owes the world a convincing explanation about the circumstances surrounding Navalny’s death.
Samir Das, Cooch Behar
Sir — The dictatorial streak of the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, is evident in the custodial killing of his trenchant critic, Alexei Navalny. Navalny’s family must get justice. But who will ensure that they do in Putin’s Russia?
Aranya Sanyal, Siliguri
Sir — Alexei Navalny fought against corruption in Russia and never wavered in his support for the freedom of expression and the rule of law. He was a proponent of democracy and he was killed for this. Navalny’s death in prison has rightly drawn ire and outrage from the international community.
S.S. Paul, Nadia
Sir — History bears witness to the fate that befalls those who confront autocrats. Alexei Navalny’s custodial death is thus no surprise. Dozens of journalists and political activists have died without an explanation under Vladimir Putin’s rule. Just last August, the Wagner chief, Yevgeny Prigozhin, was killed in a plane crash.
Countries around the world have criticised the Kremlin and called Navalny’s death a murder. But what will such criticism achieve in reality? Economic sanctions that have been imposed on Moscow because of its war on Ukraine have not yielded any results. There is little hope for a semblance of democracy to return to Russia under Putin.
Jang Bahadur Singh, Jamshedpur
Parting shot
Sir — It is most unfortunate that students are not being allowed to play a sport or engage in other leisure activities by parents who pressurise them to focus on their studies. This is inimical to their growth.
Ratan Kumar Halder, Calcutta
