M A I L B A G

Judiciary the only hope to stem the rot

HK. Dua’s front-page editorial, “When a criminal can sit in the Union Cabinet” (Nov 30) speaks volumes about the state of health of Indian democracy. The so-called leaders are, in fact, predators in the garb of MPs. With such people — murderers, criminals, mafia dons and gangsters — at the helms of affairs, the fate of our democracy is doomed unless corrective measures are taken on a war footing.

In the nauseating political atmosphere, the voter is feeling miserable and cheated. Do we vote for the criminals to run the affairs of our nation? What a predicament! Most political leaders are wolves in sheep’s clothing. From the lawbreakers, they conveniently assume the role of the lawmakers with lots of privileges at their beck and call.

When the legislature and the executive together have gone astray, the judiciary is the only hope to stem the rot. Mr Shibu Soren has been brought to book despite his exalted position in the Union Cabinet. The signals emanating from the said conviction are distinctly clear for law dodgers who are roaming freely in the corridors of power.

What can be more shocking about the Indian polity that almost 175 MLAs with criminal records are in the UP Assembly today. Mr Laloo Yadav with a train load of cases is a Union Minister. Ms Mayawati is donning the Taj Corridor corruption case, but political compulsions scuttle the move for conviction. Mr Navjot Singh Sidhu has been adjudged run-out after playing a glorious innings for 18 years.

KARNAIL SINGH, Kharar

II

Democracy is the best form of governance. It is a way of letting only the  best, honest and competent people do the job. It has worked wonders in  western countries. Why is it that it has failed so badly in India? Why it let corrupt people like Mayawati, Shibu Soren and Lalu Yadav get elected time and again and hold high public offices? Why does the majority of the population continue to live below the poverty line even after 59 years of self-rule? Why corruption is so deep-rooted in India? Why do the police defend the criminals, instead of defending the victim?

It reminds one of the following bhajan, sung by the late Mohammad Rafi:
Sankat main hai aaj vo dharati
Jis per tune janam liya
Poora kar de aaj vachan vo
Geeta main jo tune diya
Koi nahin hai tujh bin Mohan
Bharat ka rakhwala re

(The land of your birth place is in deep trouble now. Please keep up your  word that you gave in the Geeta. Mohan (Krishna), there is no one else, who can save Bharat).

SUBHASH C. CHAUDHRY, Indianapolis (USA)

III

Mr Dua’s front-page editorial has rightly brought out the character of our rulers. Mr Navjot Singh Sidhu too has been exposed in addition to Mr Shibu Soren and Ms Mayawati. Criminals are either ruling or supporting the politician and the administration and their number is alarmingly rising. As the elections to Punjab Assembly are due in March, political parties should judiciously choose candidates with a clean record. They should not give tickets to criminals and history sheeters.

The Election Commission officials should scrutinise the antecedents of the candidates thoroughly before accepting their nominations. The voters too must cast their votes in favour of good candidates known for their sincerity, honesty and excellent track record in social service.

O.P. GARG, Patiala

Bhagat Puran Singh

Bhagat Puran Singh is a phenomenon that cannot be described in words. Nearest to the rishis of yore that modern civilisation could have produced, he was what India’s distilled wisdom and heritage are all about. He sought neither power, money nor publicity and for nearly seven decades dedicated his life for the cause of the homeless, aged and infirm. Guru Nanak Dev University should confer a D.Litt degree on him for his unique contribution to humanity.

Dr G.S. BHALLA, GND University, Amritsar

Have a heart for them The news-item “Deaf and dumb girl needs help” (Dec 4) is commendable. People are dumb because they are deaf and nobody is dumb. Speech develops by reproduction of the repeatedly heard sounds. If we can improve the hearing of a deaf person, his speech will also improve. It is observed that deaf children are very intelligent, as a part of nature’s compensation. If these children are properly trained, they can be a big asset to the nation. The device which this child, Vasudha, needs is called “cochlear implant” which is a discovery of the last decade and is mostly manufactured in Australia. In fact, every profoundly deaf person may be a child or post-lingually deaf adult, can derive benefit from this device. What is actually needed for such hearing handicapped persons is development of cochlear implants in India because middlemen dealing in devices now earn huge profits making such devices very costly. Even the conventional high power digital and programme hearing aids are very costly and beyond the reach of deaf children. This compels them to lead a soundless lonely life. Ours is a welfare state where foreign cars and motorcycles are being manufactured in plenty. The government should encourage the manufacturing of these implants so that every child can hear. Abolition of customs duty and exclusion of middlemen or so-called distributors of such devices will make these more affordable. Today, we boast of soaring foreign reserves and the increasing number of billionaires. Let some benefit trickle to the handicapped too. Dr A.L. ADLAKHA, ENT Surgeon, Adlakha Hospital, Amritsar