The flood of First Information Report filings in various states across India – most of them linked to religion – and the accompanying political uproar, highlight a race toward development using polarization.
Moreover, most of the Indian news channels have space only for religious and political debates rather than reporting on development related issues. In the absence of good politics and good journalism, there is a crisis on all fronts (page 1, “Mahua faces Bhopal for comment”, 7 July).
Kartikeya Singh,
Faridabad, Haryana
It is now clear that religion has become the single main issue of politics in India. In a country as diverse as ours, it is only natural that there are different ways of praying to the same deity according to the geographical, social, linguistic and cultural milieu of this vast country. They are all equally unique. For political reasons this ‘urge’ is impractical if there is only one way out. It is also very unfortunate that a series of self-appointed patrons of the religion have begun to assume the role of God Himself, making the religion a ‘terrible’ subject for its practitioners.
S Sanjeev Rao,
Puducherry
ensure safe air travel
It is appalling that SpiceJet failed to take appropriate corrective action despite several warnings in the past about deficiencies in its operations (page 1, “SpiceJet receives DGCA notice for security lapse”, July 7). It also reveals the lack of punitive action by the regulator, DGCA. It would be appropriate that the airline cut down operations for some time so that all the shortcomings can be removed.
V. Subramaniam,
Chennai
It’s surprising that some airlines are turning a blind eye to security. A passenger’s basic assumption is that the airline will take all flight safety measures. But due to so many incidents in between, it is imperative to lose faith in air travel. The regulator needs to be more vigilant and move swiftly in initiating action.
Kosaraju Chandramouli,
Hyderabad
Tamil Nadu politics
Statements by some of the top Bharatiya Janata Party leaders in Tamil Nadu – about the state ‘waiting for Eknath Shinde’ and ‘Tamil Nadu may be divided to facilitate development’ (July 6) – are ambiguous.
Is the national party trying to make inroads in the state with the policy of divide and rule by using all unconstitutional practices?
These leaders forget that the people of this state are separate and aware. These statements may just be a case of daydreaming.
Tharsisius S Fernando,
Chennai
for upper house
Another galaxy of stars has been nominated to the Rajya Sabha. But the fact remains that in the past, many people in this ‘class of eminence’ have hardly made any meaningful contribution to parliamentary debates. Nor do they participate in the session of the Rajya Sabha. The appellation “MP” appears to be just ornamental. There are some personalities who have deep knowledge of subjects of national importance. Why are such persons not chosen?
VN Gopal,
Chennai