Regain Shimla’s glory

I endorse the views expressed by DJ Dasgupta regarding the beautification of Shimla. The ‘Queen of the Hills’ has lost much of its charm and glory. Earlier, the Shimla Municipal Committee Administration ensured its cleanliness and punished people littering the town. The historic Mall was washed by its employees with ‘mashkas’ (leather skin bags). It used to be a tourists’ paradise as also a political and cultural hub, but now it presents a disappointing look. The Mall has turned into a marketplace, starting from the lift to Chhota Shimla. The Sabzi Mandi area also presents a dismal look.

It is interesting to know that during the Raj days nobody could think of encroaching upon the municipal land. However, things are different now. It is the duty of the corporation to make Shimla really the ‘Queen of the Hills’.

Som Dutt Vasudeva, New Shimla

Either way, doomed

Arvind Kejriwal has resigned and, as expected, some media houses and his opponents have come forward with their own interpretations to the move. Some people say that he ran away as he was tied up in his own knots.

In the past, when Dr Manmohan Singh and Vajpayee stuck to their positions and refused to quit, the same crowd clamoured for their resignation. Now when Arvind has resigned on principles, then the same lot is unhappy.

Deepjot S Thukral, Ambala Cantt

Lawsuit madness

According to a press report, over two crore cases are pending disposal in the courts. What a mind-boggling mountain of arrears of court work! It brings a chilling message of gloom for the common man as justice seems to be an ever-receding cry.

Isn’t there a way out of the situation? Of course, there must be. The tragedy is that the powers-that-be do not seem to have the requisite will to meet the tough challenge boldly and squarely. The malady is too grave to the trifled with. Some stringent steps seem imperative to contain the growing “lawsuit madness”.

Tara Chand, Ambota (Una)

Life and death matter

Being a member of the legal fraternity, I wonder why the Supreme Court while commuting the death sentence of Rajiv Gandhi’s three assassins to life imprisonment has not clearly stated in its order that their life sentence should actually mean imprisonment for their remaining life. The court has been laying down this proposition in certain exceptional cases during the recent years. It could have strictly prohibited the Tamil Nadu government from moving ahead with their release. Even after the rejection of their clemency petitions by the Governor and the President, can the state government invoke benevolent provisions under the CrPC to ensure their release? This is a grey area that needs to be debated. It is hoped that the court will do the needful to prevent the misuse of the statutory provisions of the CrPC by state governments.