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Pt Joshi’s Punjab link

In his profile entitled “Bhimsen rose like a meteor” (Sunday Tribune, Nov 9), Harihar Swarup has referred to Gwalior, Lucknow and Rampur as the places where he learnt classical music.

If I recollect rightly, in an interview published in a newspaper a few years back, Pt Bhimsen Joshi had mentioned that he had spent some time in Punjab (in Jalandhar or Hoshiarpur district) in the company of visually impaired guru Bhagat Mangat Ramji, who was a great exponent of dhrupad at that time.

It was during his wandering days before he was put under the tutelage of Sawai Gandharva of Kundol. It was Bhagat Mangat Ramji who recognised the rare talent of Bhimsen Joshi and suggested to the great Vinayak Rao Patwardhan, then a doyen of music, to make arrangements for nurturing and polishing it under an expert. Thus, Bhagat Mangat Ramji and Vinayak Rao Patwardhan were also instrumental in chiselling this gem.

I am not sure about the details of Bhimsen Joshi’s stay in Punjab. I would very much appreciate if any knowledgeable person could provide these details for the benefit of the readers.

SUDARSHAN KUMAR KAPUR, Gurgaon

Rule of law

“How to tackle mob crimes” by Arun Bothra (Nov 16) does not deal with all aspects of the problem. No doubt, “in India laws are different for the rich and the poor”. So is the case in every country given the universal clout of money and power. But in India laws are different for the “majority” and the “minority” communities because of the nefarious vote-bank policy that is euphemistically called “secularism”.

Terrorism can never be contained as long as the crimes are viewed from a communal angle. Hang Afzal (as ordered by the apex court) immediately. Take on Pragya Thakur, too, if and when she is proved guilty.

If the Supreme Court orders, then Pragya Thakur, too, must be punished like Beg. Not because she is a Hindu, but because she is Afzal in saffron.

CHAMAN LAL KORPAL, Amritsar

Against the ban

“If anyone smokes, it is his or her business. I have no right to tell them to desist. But I am against the government’s ban on smoking in public places”, so said Khushwant Singh in is article, “I don’t smoke, but oppose the ban” (Saturday Extra, Oct 18).

These lines imply that he is not aware of the proven ill-effects of “passive smoking”, especially on the aged, sick and children.

If we go by his logic, then riding a two-wheeler without a helmet shouldn’t be an offence because it doesn’t harm anyone other than the rider himself in case of an accident. But smoking in public places certainly affects the health of innocent non-smokers.

So, it’s everyone’s business to support the ban on smoking in public places. Will Mr Khushwant Singh give it a second thought? n

HARBANS SINGH, Ambala Cantonment

Undeserving of Nobel Prize in Medicine
In “Nobel Prize in Science” ( Oped Page, Nov 9) Pushpa M. Bhargava has written about Bob Gallo (Bob Robert Gallo) from the US not getting the Nobel Prize for Physiology/Medicine. The award was given to Luc Montagnier of France, Francoise Barre-Sinoussi and Herald zur Hansen for their work on HIV, the AIDS causing virus.
I feel that the Nobel Foundation should not have considered the above named scientists for the award, too, since HIV, a retrovirus, also called Human T.cell Lymphotropic Virus III, is not the real cause of AIDS. Like the (Polio) virus huminis causing traumatic paralysis in infants and growing children, HIV has simply been maligned by these so-called researchers and scientists, including Bob Robert Gallo. HIV is not a new entity and has been in existence long before AIDS became such a great threat.
HIV is the most fragile virus known so far. It dies within 30 minutes of its fair exposure or at the temperature of 56°C.
Further, till date no one has isolated HIV from the body of the so-called AIDS patients. What is found in the blood of such victims as a proof of HIV is the rise of a particular kind of antibody titre (level) which has also been found in various other conditions like Hepatitis B, Tuberculosis, Malaria, Herpes, etc.
Hence, to say that HIV is the cause of AIDS is merely to divert the attention of gullible persons from the real cause of AIDS, which is completely different and its root lies somewhere else. One should ponder over the findings of Roberto Giraldo, an expert of Internal Medicine from the University of Antioquia, Colombia (USA) vide Health Tribune (Sept 16, 1998) to support my viewpoint.
Dr P.S. RAWAT,
Chandigarh