M A I L B A G

Concentrate on development please!

It is sad to see senior leaders of major political parties indulging in mudslinging. They are showing their pettiness by slandering great personalities like Veer Savarkar, Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru.

What do the present leaders know of the British jails, Kala Pani or Andaman and Nicobar islands? To fight against British imperialism, all had joined together. Though they had different views, they were respectful to each other. A fanatic took the life of Gandhiji, but all are not alike.

It is time our leaders focussed their attention on development, containing terrorism, population explosion, unemployment, illiteracy and social evils like dowry and ostentatious marriages. They should campaign in favour of energy conservation and improving the lot of the have-nots. So much time is wasted in unnecessary controversies.

Let the law take its own course in the case of tainted politicians. Criminals are present in every political party. Let the people rise to the occasion and take an oath to defeat candidates with a criminal background in the elections and cleanse the representative institutions of the ills.

Dr TARA SAXENA, Rewari

Letters to the Editor

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Editor-in-Chief

China on Sikkim

Apropos of the news-item “Chinese publication shows Sikkim as separate country” (Sept 4), in the last Parliament of which I was a member, the then Prime Minister, Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee had assured the House that his government, in its dealing with China has broken new ground as China has given up its claim to Sikkim and as proof we should see the latest cartography of the Chinese Foreign Office’s website.

In return, he said as quid pro quo he had reiterated India’s position on Tibet, which had not changed since Jawarharlal Nehru accepted China’s sovereign status over it.

This naive reversal of British policy by Nehru, whom some Indians consider to this day to be the Father of India’s foreign policy, was the greatest blunder, and perhaps his undoing too. The British had governed India through buffers, of which Afghanistan, Tibet, Persia and Burma were the four great pillars of this forward policy. The influence of India’s great neighbours, Russia, China was thus held in check. Since Nehru’s appeasement of China and Indira Gandhi’s of Soviet Russia, these two great powers sit on the doorsteps of India, though after the break up of the Soviet empire, the threat from Russia has somewhat receded.

It was a further blunder on the part of Indira Gandhi to have annexed Sikkim to the Indian Union. With the step another buffer between China and India was broken.

With the latest announcement of China, showing Sikkim to be separate country, I do wonder why successive Prime Ministers from Nehru to Vajpayee have been taken for a ride by nuclear super powers. None of them have shown the foresight, pragmatism and statesmanship to protect the territorial integrity of India. Nevertheless, they have all from time to time suspected the loyalty and patriotism of India’s minorities.

We people, living on India’s periphery, are petrified that successive governments at the Centre have failed to build up a friendly and lasting relationship with the neighbouring countries, whether Pakistan, China, Nepal, Bangladesh, Burma or Sri Lanka. Bhutan is an exception, for which the Union earns our gratitude.

SIMRANJIT SINGH MANN, President, Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar), Quilla S. Harnam Singh (Fatehgarh Sahib)

Apple of discord

For many years, Kashmir has become an apple of discord between India and Pakistan. This issue has also reached the UN and becoming a baffling problem. Despite series of peace talks between India and Pakistan, the issue remains unresolved.

I feel that if Kashmiris are involved in the peace talks, we can achieve a breakthrough. Both the governments of India and Pakistan should give a chance to Kashmiris to participate in the talks. Without knowing the views of  the Kashmiri people, these talks are effortless. The involvement of Kashmiris might prove to be a boon for resolving the Kashmir tangle.

MUNISH NAGAR, Punjabi University, Patiala

Stop at Jawali

All government and private buses do not reach Jawali bus stand. The drivers drop the passengers at Kehrian Chowk, causing inconvenience to senior citizens, women with infants and people with luggage, particularly during odd hours. Kehrian Chowk is about one km from Jawali. I draw the attention of the Himachal Pradesh Transport Minister to this problem.

SAMARJIT GUPTA, Jawali