Afghanistan in peril

The article, “Beginning of the endgame” (July 2) by HK Dua, has very rightly brought out the ground realities in Afghanistan, which NATO forces and the Obama administration tend to ignore. It would be a double jeopardy for the poor, malnourished, and war-torn Afghans if the withdrawal of troops happens without any road map for the transition of power.

The fact that there cannot be an alternative to a stable, transparent, sovereign and a civilian government is being ignored by the West just because a prolonged stay in Afghanistan will hamper their fiscal stability. There can never be a “good” and “bad” Taliban because the ulterior motive of both is to usurp the civilian government and establish a conservative, anti-women regime where human rights will have no significance.

Also, Pakistan will never wish Afghanistan to be stable due to its “India as enemy” obsession. Future can only be secured when any kind of state support for insurgent and terrorist groups is halted.

KSHITIJ BANSAL, Karnal

Gender bias

The women depicted in TV serials, advertisements and movies do not represent Indian women at all (“Casting women in stereotypical moulds”, June 27, by Rajesh Gill). They are mostly presented as glamorous. The writer has also rightly said that Indian women face humiliation daily, but none takes notice of them. Even at workplace, gender-biased comments are not a rarity. Men are still struggling with their ego problems, and find it difficult to give equal status to women.

S K SHARMA, Amritsar

A wise PM

This refers to the editorial, “Mid-course correction: Dr Singh has his task cut out” (July 1). It was a great relief for us to find that the Prime Minister has woken up at last, and felt the need of addressing a few editors. It is true that our Prime Minster is not media-savvy. This does not bother us. But when the Prime Minister remains silent for long, there is bound to be some anxiety among the citizens of the country. We must, however, not forget the fact that our Prime Minister is a wise man and prefers to speak only when others have already spoken.

The Prime Minister’s job currently is not going to be easy considering the number of scams that have come to light. It will not be an exaggeration to say that Dr Singh is wearing a crown made of thorns these days, unlike his previous term in the office.

He has still managed to do well in keeping things under control. Being an economist, he understands that the country’s future lies in building a strong economy. We may not be very happy with the present government, but other political parties have also failed to offer an alternative to the present government.

RAHUL SINGH, Faridabad

CBI & the RTI Act

The article, “Make CBI transparent” (July 4) by BR Lall, raises a pertinent issue. The Union Government’s decision to place the Central Bureau of Investigation outside the ambit of the Right to Information Act has been quite rightly criticised.

When people are losing faith in other investigating agencies, it is hardly a step in the right direction. The government tries to justify such an act on the grounds of national security. As the writer observes, the CBI is neither an intelligence-gathering agency nor a security organisation.

It is assigned jobs to investigate and reveal the truth and not conceal it. In that case, why should it remain outside the ambit of the RTI Act? Citizens of this country have the right to know about the progress of various criminal investigations, especially when so many scams have surfaced. The government must reconsider its decision to keep the agency outside the ambit of the RTI Act.