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Manipulations not people’s verdict

No doubt, Sukhbir Singh Badal is the architect of SAD-BJP victory. He manipulated many disadvantages to his favour by shrewd moves. He effectively stalled the Manpreet factor by directing the storm’s path towards the Congress. The effective use of BSP against the Congress was another game plan, besides propping up Congress rebels with financial help. The victory of SAD-BJP is not the people’s verdict but victory of manipulation, and poor management and planning of the Congress.

Congress has always been a divided house with too many leaders but very few dedicated and sincere workers. The selection of candidates was not visionary. The older leaders should call it a day. They have lost elections many times, people have rejected them.

The ‘goonda’ elements in the Congress party in Punjab also need to be removed to galvanise the party as SP has done in UP. The Congress should sit and plan for the next Assembly elections otherwise they will be washed out from Punjab for all times. You cannot go to the people just few months before the elections and win by money power and on the basis of past laurels. People want leaders to be with them through thick and thin. The Congress party should see the writing on the wall and act.

RABINDER SINGH ARNEJA, JALANDHAR

Congress did not perform as excepted, BJP too has no reason to feel upbeat either. Indeed, the Congress has gained in vote share as well as in number of seats. If BJP has unseated Congress in Goa; so has Congress humbled BJP in Uttarakhand.

According to media reports, SAD retained power in Punjab by playing politics in a classic manner i.e. inciting rebels in Congress and funding BSP. The strategy has worked for SAD and others cannot do anything but crib.

The Congress made no endeavour to lure PPP into it its fold. The party’s campaign was passive. It flawed by not proactively projecting their flagship programmes initiated at the national level. Central leadership should not have shied away from candidly conceding the episodes like 2G or CWG and should have aggressively and passionately highlighted the action taken against the wrong-doers. Congress leadership had the right opportunity to assert that the UPA is determined to tame corruption through stringent legislations like Lokpal, electoral reforms and judicial accountability Bills etc.

Notwithstanding the outcome in the recent polls, Congress will do well if they go ahead with their resolve to implement FDI in multibrand retail, NCTC or pushing bills like Insurance, Pension and Food Security Bill.

Lt-Col BACHITTAR SINGH (retd), Mohali

III

The promises made by various political parties during election campaigns to implement schemes when voted to power fall flat once in power. Every leader claims to protect the interest of the voters while announcing schemes without answering a simple question -- What did they do when they ruled the state in the past? This reminds one of William Sewell’s famous words, “We shall be judged not by what we might have been but what we have been”. Such promises that are never carried out sow the seeds of corruption. Fighting election on the basis of caste, creed, region and religion creates communalism out of secularism.

There is not a single party that does not have corrupt leaders. The only difference is that some have majority as corrupt, other have few but no one is clean. Yet these leaders project themselves like saints.

MULTAN SINGH PARIHAR, Hamirpur (HP)

Revel in rivalry
Earlier the age difference between siblings was such that the elder sibling became a father or mother figure to the younger one. The elder one lost his innocence and childhood to the responsibilities of looking after the younger ones without even realising it.

With the two-kid rule taking over, age gap between siblings became less and they became more of friends, who fought over petty issues, opponents in a minute and equivalents the next moment.

A single child policy lets parents concentrate on their respective careers, save money and devote time to their only offspring. ‘Sibling revelry' is nowhere to be seen and such children often become lonely and stubborn.

Childhood is the age of innocence and lucky are those who have siblings to share so many precious moments of their lives with each other.

They cherish fond memories throughout their lives. As they grow up, they get lost in their own worlds with new duties and responsibilities. Raji P.Shrivastava’s middle 'Sibling revelry' (March 3) was interesting and took us back to our childhood days.

ANJALI SHARMA, Dagshai Cantt

Value system

Relationship between a teacher and a pupil is established on mutual trust and respect (“Corporal punishment”, March 8). A teacher today teaches not because he/she has a passion for it but because he is paid for it. Teachers and parents do not follow a value system. It is this deficiency that heralds all child and youth related problems.

Today there is a need to redefine punishment which should hold the same yardstick in schools as in homes. Future of a child is bleak if parents and teachers jointly do not formulate a code of conduct for them.

Dr S KUMAR, Panchkula