Strange paradox

Sir — It is fascinating how really smart people can be surprisingly dense. Elon Musk became the planet’s richest person by simultaneously building the world’s most prosperous electric car company, Tesla, and the most successful private rocketry enterprise, SpaceX. One cannot achieve this without some measure of intelligence. Yet, Musk appears to have the sense of humour and impulse control of a three-year-old. Why else would he respond to Taylor Swift’s endorsement of Kamala Harris by offering to get her pregnant and protect her cats? The real question is: who will protect the world from Musk?

Arushi Gupta, Noida

Keep talking

Sir — There is no argument about the fact that the West Bengal government and the Kolkata Police bungled up in their handling of the rape and murder of a young woman doctor at the R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital. But a few days ago, the chief minister, Mamata Banerjee, waited patiently to meet the protesting doctors personally and, once again, reached out to them at their protest spot (“No end to RG Kar impasse”, Sept 15). This shows that she is making an effort to build bridges. Doctors have a moral duty to treat the ailing. It is high time they relented and went back to work while carrying on discussions with the state government on their demands.

Bal Govind, Noida

Sir — In an unexpected turn of events, Mamata Banerjee reached out to the protesting doctors twice. But she has failed to bring them around. This shows that people will not be moved by the false promises of the Establishment anymore. The government has to take concrete steps.

C.K. Subramaniam, Navi Mumbai

Sir — The protesting doctors must no longer doubt the intention of the chief minister, Mamata Banerjee, to resolve the crisis in the state. She openly promised to address all the concerns of the doctors and spoke to them with sympathy. If the junior doctors remain adamant, the situation will only worsen and the agitation will fizzle out without
a resolution.

Arun Gupta, Calcutta

Sir — Mamata Banerjee has proved that she is a seasoned politician (Waiting, waiting, waiting: Mamata with folded hands”, Sept 13). If she is indeed as sympathetic to the cause of justice as she claims to be, she should agree to a live-streaming of the meeting. After all, even her interactions with them are being live telecast. One hopes, though, that the chief minister persists with her outreach efforts and ends this impasse soon.

Samaresh Khan, West Midnapore

Open the cage

Sir — During the recent bail hearing of the chief minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal, the Supreme Court censured the Central Bureau of Investigation as a ‘caged parrot’, once again (“SC: Caged parrot CBI”, Sept 14). This is not the first time that the apex court has criticised the CBI thus. The Central investigation agency must introspect on this repeated humiliation.

Mangal Kumar Das, South 24 Parganas

Sir — There could not be a better moniker for the CBI than “caged parrot”. It has become common practice for it to toe the line of the government of the day. The Supreme Court is perhaps the only institution that common people can trust. Now that it has freed the chief minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal, it must do what is right by the scholar, Umar Khalid, too.

Murtaza Ahmad, Calcutta

Sir — Arvind Kejriwal is finally out on bail thanks to the Supreme Court. The Aam Aadmi Party claims that justice has been done at last, even though the charges against Kejriwal still stand. Moreover, the court has set several stringent conditions for this bail — Kejriwal cannot visit his office or sign any papers as the chief minister. It will be difficult for Kejriwal to regain the trust of the people. He has promised to resign and call for elections immediately. One is not sure if this is a prudent step. The political situation in the capital will be one to watch in the coming days.

Kirti Wadhawan, Kanpur

Sir — The Supreme Court granting bail to Arvind Kejriwal is a real blow for the Bharatiya Janata Party. The observation that Kejriwal’s arrest was unjustified shows the CBI in a poor light. It is time the CBI came out of its cage.

N. Mahadevan, Chennai

Tenacious lot

Sir — One of the toughest tests for a modern-day tennis player is to maintain excellence all year round. The season starts in early January and ends only in mid-November, traversing continents, different time zones and a multitude of playing surfaces. What Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka achieved in New York by winning their maiden US Open singles titles to go with their Australian Open crowns from earlier in the season is thus an ode to their fitness, consistency and all-round playing ability. Carlos Alcaraz, too, made history by winning two Slams in one calendar year.

Indranil Saha, Calcutta