The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Thursday, December 5, 2002, Chandigarh, India

THE TRIBUNE SPECIALS

50 YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE

TERCENTENARY CELEBRATIONS

M A I L B A G

Politics of hatred & freedom of speech

It is really distressing that some political leaders, especially VHP leaders, are bent upon pursuing the politics of hatred and by their utterances they have put the nation to shame. In a democracy every individual has a right to express his or her views but this freedom of expression ends when the freedom of another individual begins and the rabid hate speak of a few political leaders cannot be tolerated by all right-thinking Indians.

Dr Parvin Togadia, General Secretary of the VHP, who happens to be a cancer specialist, heads the list of those who spread the cancer of communal hatred all around. His highly deplorable and sordid attacks on Ms Sonia Gandhi, Congress President, affects the entire country. We rightly boast of our great civilisation that has survived the onslaught of time and foreign rule, but this civilisation has not taught us to be uncivil or intolerate. The strenth of the Hindu religion comes from the fact that it has very much flexibility and encompasses all kinds of views.

Neither the traditions of the Indian civilisation nor teachings of the Hindu religion have taught Indians to speak like Togadia. Such persons with a particular kind of mindest do not have the mandate to speak on behalf of either all Hindus or on behalf of the Indians.

Dr M. HASHIM KIDWAI, New Delhi

Punjab doomed

I guess Punjab is doomed to repeat the mistakes made following a power tussle between the Darbara Singh and Zail Singh factions to take over the SGPC. It's a bad dream all over again. I guess Punjab's fate lies in the hands of a few dozen families, which are all related through marriages.

The blood that was spilled unnecessarily for so long means nothing to the current key power players. We who are abroad are just disgusted with all that is happening back home.

It does not take crores of rupees to run a government, just good faith and common sense. But then who has it? Both the top leaders were born with silver or golden spoons in their mouths. They never had to work for a living or leave their house to sustain themselves.

Punjab is doomed for ever and there is no worthy leader with middle class roots or people's touch who might even dare to stand up to the police-bureaucrat-feudalism trio.

N.S. GREWAL, New York

Pay pension at home

On the 1st of every month, most of the banks have a long line of senior citizens who come to collect their pension. It is heartening to see especially those who can’t even walk or suffer from an ailment making the effort. I request all the banks to make alternative arrangements for such people so that their pension could be delivered at home. However, any such arrangement must be foolproof so that the money is given to the one who is entitled to receive it. I hope at least some banks would come forward to help such people.

PRABHJIT KAUR, Jalandhar

Kelkar’s proposals

There is a spate of fury over the recommendations of the Kelkar Task Force. From the common man to the intelligentsia, from a salaried person to a business person and from an agriculturist to an industrialist, all are expressing their views and apprehensions through different means and modes to caution the government.

I think the recommendations have been blown out of proportion, considering the fact that our economic decisions are never based on purely realistic economics and that too when a general election is not far away. But I fear that after all this process and exercise of “sagar manthan”, the “tilak” will be put on the forehead of the government with the blood of the usually sacrificial goat — the salaried class — as the “vish” is meant for this class and the “amrit” is for others.

Dr P.K. MALIK, Yamunanagar