Undue delay

There has been considerable delay in putting to practice the death sentence announced for 26/11 terror perpetrator Ajmal Kasab. This seems to be one of the drawbacks of our democratic system that even after having the proof of being guilty, a person who is the prime accused in brutal killings and spreading terror in our country, has not been punished yet. For the last 4 years, a terrorist in enjoying the hospitality of the Indian government.

There should not be mercy for the one who has not shown respect for human life. Moreover, justifying himself as an instrument for Lashkar-e-Taiba as a reason for mercy plea, sounds fictitious. Laws should be made flexible and legal procedures less time consuming.

ROHIT KUMAR, Amritsar

In lighter vein

Bharat Hiteshi’s middle “Landing in trouble” (October 17) showcased how some VIPs wittingly or unwittingly get trapped in strange situations. However, considering laughter as one of the best blessings conferred by God upon mankind, we should not feel irritated, neither react harshly. Rather, the antics of the clown should amuse us. As the tale goes: An old lady was going somewhere. A few asses also began to follow her. On seeing this, some urchins who were playing around loudly uttered: “Good-bye mother of asses.” Looking towards them, the lady wittingly acknowledged, “Long live my dear sons.”

Prof B M RAWLLEY, Zirakpur

Eye-opening exposes

The recent exposures by anti-corruption activists and whistleblowers have given the political class and their bureaucrat aides sleepless nights. In the pursuing melee, one thing that has become clear is that politicians of all hues are chips of the same block and defend each other on the principle” You scratch my back, I will scratch yours”, notwithstanding the noise created by them and blame game which is only meant for public consumption. The law may or may not catch up with the corrupt and the defaulters may not be punished as they are adept in subverting investigations to their advantage but they will have to bear in mind that they can no longer take the masses for a ride who will not spare such leaders in the electoral battle now.

M K JINSI, Amritsar

Cause of ridicule Lately, reading a newspaper has become interesting with such ridiculous statements as are condemnable too, coming from our leaders that one cannot afford to suppress a laughter. We do not even need a cartoonist’s creation to bring out the absurdity of the situation. The Union Steel Minister defended his colleague saying that a man like Salman Khurshid will not do any wrong for merely Rs 71 lakh which is “a very small amount” for a Central minister. A khap panchayat in Jind has blamed junk food like chowmein for the growing number of rape cases against women in Haryana. Another khap panchayat had advocated lowering of marriageable age for girls from 18 to 16 in order to reduce their vulnerability to rapes with a former Chief Minister endorsing the same. CHEENA PARMAR, Shimla

Education suffering

14 monomode open universities and 220 dual mode conventional universities have established teaching shops in every nook and corner of the country. During admission, holding of contact classes, examination and through the fee structure, they earn private gains at the cost of the poor.

It is an irony that education of the poor is self-financed whereas education of the rich sections of society is subsidised. The regulatory bodies mainly the UGC (University Grant Commission) and the All India Council for Technical Education are unaware of the corrupt and commercial practices of ODL institutions.

The ODL institutions should not be allowed to operate beyond their area of jurisdiction. Duplication of efforts with ODL institutions should be avoided. The system of subsidised education should be stopped and the prescribed norms should be adhered to.

Dr H KUMAR KAUL, Barnala

II

Admission to institutes of higher education should only be given to the highly deserving and promising students. Social sectors like education should not be merely considered for revenue generation. There has been mushroom growth of educational institutions over the years. Majority of such institutions have been producing a large number of degree holders who are incompetent to get rightful jobs. To ensure quality education, a highly regulated, dedicated and well-monitored education system must be put in place.

RAMESH DOGRA, Chandigarh

Police at fault

There is no denying the fact that the rate of conviction in rape cases is not only pathetic but inadequate (editorial “Act of depravity”, Oct 17). The question is who is responsible for this state of affairs? Primarily it is the police who is responsible for the large-scale acquittal of the accused in such cases.

During the course of investigation of sexual offences, material pieces of legal evidence are not collected to bring home the guilt to the accused, in fact, some of the investigating officers do not know what are the legal ingredients of an offence under Section 376, IPC which are required to be proved by the prosecution.

SOM DUTT VASUDEVA, Shimla